***** 

**  r 


CAPTAIN  LANDON 


HEADS— ARMY!    TAILS,  I  STAY  HERE  !  "-Page  32. 


CAPTAIN  LANDON 


A  Story  of  Modern  Rome 


RICHARD  HENRY  SAVAGE, 

AUTHOR  OF 

"My  OFFICIAL  WIFE,"  "  CHECKED 
THROUGH,"  ETC. 


CHICAGO  AND  NEW  YORK: 

RAND,  McNALLY  &  COMPANY, 

PUBLISHERS. 


Copyright,  1899,  by  Richard  Henry  Savage. 
All  rights  reserved. 


BOOK  I 
A  WAITING  GAME 


CAPTAIN  LANDON. 


BOOK  I. 
A  WAITING  GAME. 


CHAPTER  I. 

ALL   ROADS   LEAD    TO    ROME. 

The  stuffy  little  Italian  railway  train  slackened, 
after  skirting  the  Sabine  and  Alban  mountains, 
and,  when  it  halted  at  the  bridge  over  the  diminu- 
tive Arno,  Frank  Hatton  wearily  raised  his  head 
as  the  guard,  with  a  suggestive  snap  of  his  fingers, 
cried  "Ecco  la !" 

There,  before  him,  to  the  right,  the  dome  of  St. 
Peter's  rose  sharply  cut  against  lean  brown  hill 
and  pale  green  sky.  It  was  their  world  goal.  And, 
the  realization  seemed,  after  all,  so  prosaic. 

"All  roads  lead  to  Rome,"  cheerfully  mur- 
mured Hatton,  as  he  roused  his  tired  companion. 
"Boots  and  Saddles!"  he  cried,  with  a  civilian's 
vague  misuse  of  military  jargon. 


8  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"If  there  is  any  other  road,"  muttered  Captain 
Sidney  Landon,  "I  will  patronize  it,  on  my  next 
visit!" 

"So,  you  were  not  asleep?"  queried  Hatton. 

"I  have  just  discovered,  by  slipping  on  my 
thinking  cap,  Frank,"  remarked  the  Captain,  "that 
I  have  only  a  faint  idea  of  my  official  responsibili- 
ties as  Vice  Consul  General  to  be,  of  the  United 
States  of  America." 

"Leave  all  that  for  the  future,"  replied  his  trav- 
eling companion.  "I  fancy  that  you  will  have 
little  to  do  but  draw  your  salary !  In  words  of  the 
present,  we  have  lodgings  to  select, — the  inner 
man  to  provide  for, — and  we  must  cogitate,  for 
we  will  be  there  in  half  an  hour !  Here  is  a  sight 
for  you !" 

"Pshaw !"  muttered  the  soldier.  "I've  seen  the 
Grand  Canyon  of  the  Colorado  and  the  Yosemite. 
It  is  a  bit  strange,  however,  that  we  two  soldiers 
of  fortune  should  not  know  a  single  soul  in  a  city 
of  three  hundred  thousand.  And  we  are  so  fitly 
prepared  for  the  greatness  about  to  be  thrust  upon 
us.  My  West  Point  French  and  border  Spanish 
is  but  slimly  reinforced  here  with  your  vast  stores 
of  guttural  German.  We  are  outside  barbarians." 


ALL  ROADS   LEAD  TO   ROME. 

"First  class  passengers  in  a  second  class  com- 
partment," cheerily  rejoined  Hatton.  "After  all, 
our  'bumblezug'  from  Florence  is  better  than  foot- 
ing it  like  the  old  invaders.  We  have  seen  Thrasi- 
mene's  storied  shores,  frowning  Orvieto,  Soractes' 
storied  steep,  and  Mentana's  bloody  slopes  with 
the  purple  Apennines  for  a  background.  In  the 
old  days,  I  would  have  carried  a  spear  as  a  humble 
soldier  under  Brennus,  'larding  the  lean  earth/ 
while  you,  appropriately  ranked,  would  have 
ridden  a  snow  white  charger  and  gone  on  glitter- 
ing in  cuirass  and  golden  greaves !" 

"There,  away  you  soar,  in  your  literary  balloon, 
Frank,"  cried  the  Captain,  gathering  up  his  little 
belongings.  "My  laurels  were  all  won  in  a  buck- 
skin jacket  on  the  hurricane  deck  of  a  wild  west 
broncho. 

"I've  seen  but  little  of  the  pomp  and  glory  of 
war,"  he  sighed — "but, — I've  felt  the  sharp  snap 
of  the  enemy's  lead, — 'to  the  Queen's  taste !' 

"Let  us  be  prosaic !  We  must  make  a  first  camp 
somewhere!  Besides,  tho'  used  to  tortillas  and 
broiled  'jerky,' — I  am  in  a  revolt  against  the  dark 
little  birds, — the  things  that  crawled,  and  all  the 
mystery  of  our  railway  cuisine!" 


10  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

The  two  young  Americans  descended  to  be 
pounced  upon,  at  once,  by  a  horde  of  drivers  of 
"botti"  and  "citadine." 

"This  chap  seems  the  least  vociferous  and  un- 
civil! Let's  take  him!  This  is  the  Holy  City. 
'Ogniuno  per  se,  e  Dio  per  tutti !' ' 

The  soldier  revolted  at  the  touch  of  the  scream- 
ing drivers  and  drew  back  his  stately  head  as  the 
coarse  peasants  snapped  their  fingers  under  his 
nose  with  inviting  clicks. 

So,  it  fell  out,  that  the  gilt  banded  cap  of  the 
head  porter  of  the  Hotel  de  Russie  was  doffed,  a 
little  unwillingly,  as  the  young  pilgrims  strode, 
half  an  hour  later,  into  the  cool  entrance  of  the 
aristocratic  resort. 

The  shades  of  night  already  invited  rest,  and 
the  white  stars  sparkled  like  diamonds  over  the 
dusky  ilex  shades  under  the  Pincian  when  the 
friends  counted  up  all  the  disjecta  membra  of  their 
luggage  rescued  from  the  Fra  Diavolos  of  the  cus- 
toms and  the  Robert  Macaires  of  the  Universal 
Brotherhood  of  Insolent  Railway  Porters. 

The  curious  throng  of  English  aristocrats,  Rus- 
sian nobles  and  visiting  cognoscenti  stared  pas- 
sively at  the  tired  travelers  when  they  were  ush- 


ALL  ROADS   LEAD  TO   ROME.  11 

ered  into  their  cosy  apartment  au  premier.  "We 
have  made  our  debut  in  style,  and  so,  we  can  soon 
disappear  in  the  interests  of  a  prudent  economy, 
Frank,"  laughed  Landon,  as  they  sat  down  to  a 
raffine  little  supper. 

It  was  an  hour  later  and  the  cigars  were  lit, 
when  the  Captain  called  up  the  programme  of 
action. 

"Of  course — there's  a  stroll  on  the  Corso,  be- 
fore turning  in,  but,  before  us  lies  the  morrow, 
laden  with  the  stern  realities  of  life.  I  have  only 
my  chief  to  interview,  and  to  explain  the  leisurely 
process  of  four  months  lost  in  arriving  at  my 
station,  via  Ireland,  Scotland,  Wales  and  Eng- 
land, the  Low  Countries,  Paris,  Switzerland  and 
Lombardy." 

"You  certainly  have  fulfilled  the  State  Depart- 
ment's kindly  injunction  'not  to  hurry  in  report- 
ing,' and  their  courteous  permission  'to  take  the 
most  circuitous  route/ "  admiringly  remarked 
Hatton,  gazing  at  the  strangely  moody  face  of 
the  young  soldier. 

"I  always  try  to  obey  orders,"  placidly  rejoined 
Landon. 

"And,  now,  I  suppose  that  you  will  hurl  your- 


12  CAPTAIN  LANDQN. 

self  into  your  new  duties,  with  a  vengeance," 
continued  the  journalist. 

"I  will  let  the  work  come  to  me,  Frank,"  re- 
marked Landon,  strolling  to  the  window  and  gaz- 
ing out  at  the  unanswering  stars.  "My  dear  old 
chief,  General  George  Thomas,  told  me  never  to 
volunteer !  'There's  always  work  enough  waiting 
to  be  put  up  against  you/  said  the  dear  old  'Slow 
Trot' " 

The  young  official  tossed  his  cigar  away  with  a 
sigh. 

"If  there  was  only  some  good  stiff  fighting  now, 
— over  here,"  the  soldier  impatiently  murmured. 
"Let  us  go  down — I  have  to  find  out  where  the 
lordly  Consolate  Generale  degli  State  Uniti  di 
America  is  housed !  Somewhere,  I  believe,  around 
the  Piazzi  di  Spagna." 

"There  is  where  stout  Caesar  Borgia  hewed  the 
head  off  a  bull  with  a  single  blow,"  murmured 
Hatton. 

"Don't  believe  a  word  of  it,  any  more  than  the 
letters  you  will  write  from  the  Eternal  City  to 
your  somnolent  Philadelphian  newspaper,"  an- 
swered Landon,  with  a  touch  of  sarcasm. 

"By  the  way,  all  I  know  is  my  chief's  name  and 


ALL   ROADS   LEAD  TO   ROME.  13 

the  rumor  that  he  has  a  thoroughly  charming 
wife, — a  subtle  spirit  of  fire  and  flame.  You,  at 
least,  have  a  distant  hold  upon  your  unknown  em- 
ployer, Mr.  Rawdon  Clark,  and  I  believe  a  far- 
stretched  cousinship  with  some  artist  here.  Let  us 
go  down  and  find  these  addresses  out. 

"A  pretty  Rome  we  will  see — yours  the  dim  re- 
flections of  journalistic  skimming, — mine,  the 
'demnition  grind'  of  an  unimportant  office.  The 
Rome  of  the  modern  newspaper — the  Rome  of  the 
brand  new  American  Consular  circle.  We  will  see 
no  lances  glittering  on  these  hoary  hills,  no  flam- 
ing signs  in  the  skies.  The  days  of  miracles  are 
over!  Vogue  la  galere!" 

Hatton  eyed  his  companion  curiously.  "I  won- 
der at  your  lack  of  interest  in  life,  Landon.  A 
Captain  at  twenty-seven, — you  have  already  made 
a  distinguished  record ; — the  official  way  has  been 
made  smooth  for  you  by  all  sorts  of  concessions, 
in  fact,  on  the  steamer,  it  was  hinted  to  me  that 
you  would  soon  displace  your  chiefs  while  I  must 
rack  my  brains  to  send  two  letters  a  week  'chron- 
icling the  doings  of  distinguished  Americans' — 
or,  else — lose  my  local  habitation  and  a  name — 
that  of  a  poor  foreign  correspondent." 


14  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Landon  had  halted  in  the  doorway.  "See  here, 
Hatton,"  he  sharply  said,  "you'll  do  me  a  favor  to 
contradict  any  such  nonsense.  I  come  to  bring 
peace — not  a  sword!  My  army  career  is  closed 
forever, — and, — I  care  nothing  for  the  officious 
friends  behind  me  who  would  push  me  on  un- 
fairly." 

He  ceased  abruptly,  as  he  noted  Hatton's  look 
of  surprise.  "Tell  me,  rather,  something  of  this 
meteoric  capitalist,  Clark!" 

"I  will  have  to  wait,"  slowly  answered  Hatton, 
"until  the  Brandons  can  enlighten  me.  Robert 
Brandon  and  I  are  linked  by  some  attenuated  kin- 
ship, tho'  I've  never  met  him;  but  I'm  told  that 
Myra  Brandon  has  well  earned  her  title  of  'The 
Encyclopedia,'  by  her  fifteen  years'  residence  in 
Rome. 

"As  Brandon  vibrates  from  his  studio  here  to 
the  Schuylkill,  he  is  au  fait  with  all  Philadelphian 
gossip. 

"When  I  left  Rutgers  College  and  entered  on 
the  dismal  drudgery  of  a  law  office,  it  was  Edgar 
Styles  of  the  Mail  who  first  encouraged  my  feeble 
attempts  at  the  belles  lettres. 

"He,  God  bless  him,  had  already  arranged  for 


ALL  ROADS   LEAD  TO   ROME.  15 

this  three  years'  European  tour  of  mine  when 
Clark  bought  in  a  controlling  interest  and  fortu- 
nately saved  the  venerable  'Philadelphia  Mail' 
from  ruin. 

"It  was  a  case  of  outside  speculative,  general 
bonhomie  and  too  much  enterprise,  with  Styles. 

"All  I  know  of  Rawdon  Clark  is  that  he  has  ac- 
cumulated a  huge  fortune  by  meteoric  operations 
in  the  far  west, — that  he  is  a  man  of  uncontroll- 
able vigor  and  push,  and,  that,  boomerang  like,  he 
is  attacking  our  staid  Philadelphian  society  from 
the  uttermost  curves  of  a  long  European  tour. 
He  is  both  parvenu  and  masterful  man !" 

The  chance-met  companions  were  strolling 
along  the  narrow  sidewalks  of  the  Corso,  when 
Landon,  with  piqued  curiosity,  returned  to  the 
subject  of  Hatton's  strange  employer.  "Is  this 
Clark  a  self-made  man,  a  product  of  the  wild 
west  ?"  he  demanded. 

They  had  tired  of  the  mixed  multitude,  the 
tawdry  shop  windows,  the  deafening  cries  of 
"Ecco  il  Fanfulla, — ecco  la  Capitale,"  and  had 
sought  for  a  quiet  refuge  in  a  wine  cellar,  the  re- 
sort of  a  motley  crowd  of  students,  officers  and 
tourists. 


16  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"No  one  seems  to  know  of  his  antecedents," 
gravely  replied  Hatton.  "He  appeared  suddenly 
in  Philadelphia,  staggering  the  town  with  the 
magnitude  of  his  many  investments.  It  was 
rumored  that  he  intended  to  erect  unto  himself  a 
palace,  like  the  fabled  Kublai  Khan  who  did  'a 
stately  pleasure  dome  decree.' 

"It  is  further  said  that  a  preliminary  club  black- 
balling caused  him  to  cut  over  here,  and  to  swear 
that  he  would  re-enter  our  home  society  as  a  vic- 
tor, for  the  little  bird  whispers  that  the  doors  of 
swelldom  at  home  were  closed  upon  him,  until  he 
can  prove  title." 

"We  can't  all  be  born  Biddies,"  laughed  Lan- 
don. 

"Well,  I  will  soon  size  him  up,"  murmured 
Hatton.  "I  have  a  sheaf  of  letters  to  artists,  resi- 
dent Americans  and  our  past  journalistic  connec- 
tions. I  am  told  that  Mrs.  Myra  Brandon's  salon 
is  his  great  coign  of  vantage,  for  he's  a  liberal 
purchaser  of  Brandon's  pictures." 

"A  sure  way  to  reach  the  heart  of  an  artist's 
wife,  be  he  ever  so  successful,"  retorted  Landon. 

"Moreover,  he  must  be  a  sly  dog,"  continued 
Hatton,  "for  he  is  forming  a  collection  of  objets 


ALL   ROADS   LEAD   TO   ROME.  17 

d'art  and  allows  Madame  Myra  to  generously  se- 
lect for  him." 

"Then  he  is  a  sure  winner,"  smiled  Landon, 
"for  pleasure  and  percentages  go  hand  in  hand, 
here  in  Rome,  I  am  told." 

The  entrance  of  a  half  dozen  young  fellows  who 
had  been  companions  of  the  deck-tramping  on  the 
Aurania  a  few  weeks  before,  soon  made  up  a 
moving  circle,  augmented  by  the  flower  girls, 
ciceroni  and  all  the  mysteriously  evolved  touts 
who  follow  up  the  callow  American  abroad. 

While  Hatton,  note  book  in  hand,  was  already 
busied  in  gleaning  local  items  for  their  joint  Com- 
mittee of  Ways  and  Means, — Sidney  Landon, 
with  his  head  buried  in  his  hands,  listened  to  the 
ringing  notes  of  a  body  of  passing  student  singers. 

In  vain  did  Giuletta,  the  veriest  witch  of  the 
flower  girls,  toss  the  red  and  white  Roman  roses 
in  his  lap.  He  saw  not  her  smiling  eyes,  though 
he  absently  threw  her  a  coin  which  made  her  mur- 
mur "Ecco  un  cavaliere !" 

The  young  soldier's  thoughts  were  far  away  in 
a  stormy  and  a  shadowed  past.  The  long-necked 

wine  flasks  went  round  all  unheeded,  as  he  ran 
a 


18  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

down  the  strange  life-current  of  the  seven  years 
of  his  frontier  fighting  experience. 

Tall  and  graceful,  with  dark  earnest  eyes,  Sid- 
ney Landon,  at  twenty-seven,  was  a  proper  squire 
of  dames.  But  there  were  deep  lines  of  care  on  his 
brow,  showing  white  above  the  sun-burned  tints 
of  the  Apache  land,  and  a  strong  curve  of  repres- 
sion in  the  stern  lips,  under  the  darkly  sweeping 
cavalry  mustache. 

"Nice  looking  fellow,  Landon,"  said  Grimes  of 
the  New  York  Herald,  to  Hatton,  as  they  lingered 
in  a  far  corner,  where  the  newcomer  had  dragged 
his  senior  to  gather  points  upon  "bachelor  house- 
keeping" in  Rome. 

"Soldierly  looking  chap,  too, — but, — there's 
something  gone  out  of  his  life!  I  wonder  if  he 
had  any  trouble  in  the  army,"  mused  Grimes,  al- 
ways an  agnostic  by  habit. 

"Nonsense,"  retorted  Hatton.  "Old  General 
Rufus  Hatcher,  who  came  over  with  us,  told  me 
that  he  was  one  of  the  most  promising  young  cav- 
alrymen in  the  army.  He  has  been  desperately 
wounded  and  three  times  mentioned  for  conspic- 
uous gallantry  in  action." 


ALL   ROADS   LEAD  TO   ROME.  19 

"And,  yet,  there  are  flaws  even  in  diamonds," 
mused  Grimes. 

"These  West  Pointers  are  about  the  last  of  the 
sentimentalists." 

"All  I  know  is  what  Hatcher  told  me,"  stub- 
bornly rejoined  the  loyal  Hatton,  "and,  you  may 
be  sure,  when  Colonel  Miles  Atwater  of  the 
'Grays'  made  him  Regimental  Adjutant,  after 
only  three  years  of  service, — that  he  is  a  simon 
pure." 

"All  right,"  good  humoredly  nodded  Grimes, 
"I'll  take  your  friend  into  our  coterie,  at  your  esti- 
mate." 

The  free  lance  of  the  Herald  had  already  turned 
forty  and  he  had  seen  "a  deal  of  life, — its  varnish 
and  veneer, — the  stucco  fronts  of  character,  flake 
off  and  disappear." 

He  was  the  doyen  of  the  Roman  American  lit- 
erary cult,  and,  so,  presided  over  an  informal  club 
at  a  miraculously  discovered  old  dwelling  on  the 
Corso,  happily  unknown  to  the  Philistine  of  the 
baser  sort. 

It  was  a  very  haven  of  rest  to  the  flower  of  the 
transplanted  American  colony,  and  Grimes  ruled  it 
with  a  rod  of  iron  and  much  circumspection. 


20  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

The  elder  man  nodded  his  assent  as  they  moved 
back  to  Sidney  Landon's  table.  Grimes  gazed 
kindly  on  Frank  Hatton's  beaming  face.  There 
was  something  inspiring  in  the  genial  face  of  old 
Rutger's  favorite  son. 

At  thirty,  Hatton's  boyish  faith  still  shone  out 
unbroken  in  his  honest  blue  eyes. 

The  upright  solidity  of  his  plump,  robust  figure 
was  set  off  by  his  merry,  honest  face,  still  smooth 
shaven,  a  deference  to  his  jilted  first  love, — the 
law, — and  finished  by  the  frank  smile  of  his  fresh 
lips  and  the  unruffled  composure  of  his  manly 
countenance. 

"Hatton  is  an  acquisition, — one  in  whom  there 
is  no  guile,"  murmured  Grimes,  recalling  the 
Three  Star  introductions  of  the  new  champion  of 
the  Philadelphia  Mail — "but,  if  I  mistake  not,  our 
dark-eyed,  handsome  soldier  is  like  the  'woman 
with  a  past/ — he  is  a  man  with  a  story !" 

Grimes  was  vaguely  wondering  if  he  would  ever 
find  it  out,  when  Hatton  had  already  plunged  "in 
media  res." 

"Such  a  lucky  chance, — Landon.  To  be  settled 
at  once,  and,  in  the  heart  of  the  best  region" — en- 
thusiastically ran  on  Hatton,  "and, — there's  a  bit 


ALL   ROADS   LEAD  TO   ROME.  "          21 

of  deserted  garden, — a  ruined  fountain, — the  dia- 
mond water  pouring  from  an  old  lion's  head, — a 
glimpse  of  waving  olive  trees,  and  even  a  patch  of 
visible  blue  sky." 

When  the  ardent  journalist  had  finished  his 
catalogue,  Grimes'  grave  voice  broke  in  with  a 
word  of  solemn  warning : 

"You  are  not  a  society  man,  Captain?  If  you 
are,  I  should  deem  it  my  duty  to — " 

"I  am  alone  in  the  world,"  rejoined  Landon, 
"and  I  have  only  come  to  Rome  to  get  away  from 
that  peopled  loneliness  called  society." 

"You  will  never  be  lonely  again,"  grimly  re- 
plied Grimes.  "We  are  a  companionable  sort,  but 
our  fortress  on  the  Corso  is  an  Eveless  Paradise. 
You  will  find  'no  light  plume  as  a  token.' ' 

"So  much  the  better,"  laughed  Sidney  Landon 
as  they  sat  down  to  hear  a  band  of  Roman 
students  musically  intone  "Santa  Lucia,"  with  the 
unrepressed  enthusiasm  of  the  explosive  Italian 
nature. 

"Then,  it  is  all  arranged,"  joyously  cried  the 
sanguine  Hatton.  "I  have  no  doubt  the  wine  will 
hold  up  to  the  bush." 

"I  leave  it  all  to  you,  Hatton." 


22  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"Suppose  that  you  act  as  Quartermaster  Gen- 
eral to-morrow  while  I  go  and  pay  'my  official  re- 
spects.' There  is  always  one  saving  clause," 
gravely  added  Landon,  with  a  serio-comic  bow  to 
Grimes.  "We  can  be  ejected,  at  any  time,  if  we 
break  the  unwritten  rules  of  your  Eveless  Para- 
dise." 

"I  shall  issue  a  writ  of  ne  exeat,"  politely  an- 
swered Grimes,  as  they  fell  into  an  easy  chat. 

Before  they  all  strolled  over  to  take  a  midnight 
peep  at  the  Tiber  from  the  Ponte  San  Angelo, 
Grimes  and  Landon  had  traced  out  twenty  com- 
mon friendships.  The  newly  arrived  pilgrims 
merrily  laughed  at  Grimes'  flashlight  photographs 
of  their  still  unknown  acquaintances  to  be. 

"Ah !  Yes !  Your  official  chief,  Landon,  Arthur 
Melville,  has  the  soul  of  an  impassioned  artist  in 
a  Puritan  body !  I  doff  my  beaver  to  his  dainty 
wife!  Madame  Gertrude  Melville  has  convinced 
even  the  difficile  Italian  noblesse  that  an  Amer- 
ican woman  can  be  the  'grande  dame,'  even  with 
no  heraldic  quarterings. 

"You'll  get  on  famously  with  them  both!  As 
you  are  fond  of  loneliness,  Melville's  official  habits 
will  suit  you.  He  has  an  Italian  famulus  there,  a 


ALL  ROADS  LEAD  TO   ROME.  23 

party  with  the  atrocious  name  of  Jacopo  Maspero 
— who  seems  to  enjoy  doing  all  the  work ! 

"Melville  is  conspicuous  by  his  absence,  but  his 
home  in  the  rambling  old  palace  is  the  cradle  of  a 
graceful  hospitality. 

"Maspero  knows  his  Rome,  and  all  the  slumber- 
ing vendettas  of  the  Colonna  and  Orsini  lurk  in 
his  veiled  eyes  and  are  hidden  in  his  silken  voice. 

"All  the  notables  and  artist  guild  you  will  meet, 
soon  enough,  at  their  studios,  or  the  American 
Club. 

"There  are  a  few  really  nice  people  here — you 
can  soon  sift  out  the  lot  at  discretion.  I  have  no 
advice  to  give  to  those 'who  are  at  Rome  also.'  You 
will  soon  meet  all  the  cads  and  traveling  American 
nuisances  officially, — so,  gird  on  your  armor !  The 
round  of  so-called  society  has  a  strange  undertow 
of  picture  and  statue  peddling  in  it." 

"My  respectable  poverty  is  an  ironclad  de- 
fense," laughed  Landon. 

"Then, — all  I  can  bid  you  is  to  avoid  two  things 
— flirtation,  and  the  Roman  fever ! 

"For  the  first,  I  will  cure  you  by  dragging  you 
away  into  the  Abruzzi,  where  no  petticoat  flaunt- 


24  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

eth ;  for  the  last,  Doctor  Caesar  Corvini,  the  Lega- 
tion and  official  physician,  is  a  'feste  burg.' 

"If  you  go  in  for  riding,  there's  the  Roman 
Hunt, — with  lots  of  nice  people,  and  if  you  are 
fond  of  athletics,  'Charley'  Hollingsworth,  our 
Harvard  ex-champion,  will  coach  you  on  the 
crooked  Tiber,  if  he  can  drag  you  away,  once  that 
you  are  under  her  batteries,  from  his  charming 
wife,  Mrs.  Elaine  Hollingsworth,  our  bright  par- 
ticular social  star." 

They  had  reached  the  Place  San  Angelo,  when 
Hatton  bethought  him  of  his  own  future  connec- 
tions. Grimes  laughed  with  an  unaccustomed  glee 
as  he  sketched  Robert  Brandon. 

"The  very  best  fellow  in  Rome, — an  admirable 
host, — an  alleged  artist, — the  prince  of  good  fel- 
lows, who  manages — by  hook  or  crook — to  sell  all 
his  smears,  and  to  leave  no  sting  behind !" 

"They  say,"  growled  Grimes,  lowering  his 
voice,  "that  he  provides  his  artistic  victims  with 
funds  to  leave  Rome  secretly,  after  he  has  done 
them  a  la  Monte  Carlo.  The  Madame!  Ay! 
There's  the  rub!  No  one  has  ever  been  strong 
enough  to  resist  the  many  wiles  of  Mrs.  Myra 
Brandon.  A  modern  prototype  of  the  Admirable 


ALL  ROADS  LEAD  TO  ROME.  25 

Crichton — from  choosing  a  cameo  to  arranging  a 
difficult  match, — from  matching  a  Roman  scarf, 
to  turning  out  a  Minister  Resident,  from  church 
to  fair,  and  back  through  all  the  Midway  Plais- 
ance  of  fashionable  folly.  She  is  the  wheel  horse 
of  the  American  colony. 

"To  you,  Hatton,  she  will  be  of  immense  value ! 
Modern  Rome  revolves  around  her  ample  form  as 
a  reliable  human  hub. 

"To  Captain  Landon,  she  is  the  very  acme  of 
danger  and  deceit.  She  is  the  match  maker  of  our 
time!  If  you  run  not  upon  the  Scylla  of  one  of 
her  baby-faced  blonde  protegees,  you  will  be 
wrecked  upon  the  dark  beauties  of  some  inviting 
dusky-eyed  Charybdis  of  a  brunette. 

"She  evolves  the.  most  inviting  girls  from  social 
nothingness,  and  has  actually  married  off  a  poor 
American  girl  to  a  rich  Roman  prince — a  feat 
hitherto  deemed  impossible  of  achievement!" 

They  were  looking  at  the  stars  twinkling  on  the 
Tiber  and  listening  to  Grimes'  deep  voice  mouth- 
ing "Stop!  For  thy  tread  is  on  an  Empire's  dust !" 
when  Hatton,  in  a  business-like  way,  called  up 
the  name  of  Rawdon  Clark. 


26  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

The  declaimer  dropped  into  an  energetic  stac- 
cato. 

"Oh!  Yes!  Your  spick  span  new  millionaire 
employer !  Croesus  Magnus !  He  is  a  thin-lipped 
human  shark,"  mercilessly  proceeded  Grimes.  "If 
I  met  him  in  the  Bad  Lands  I  should  surely  jerk 
out  my  Winchester  and  cover  him  while  in  sight. 

"In  Texas,  I  should  endeavor,  'pro  bono  pub- 
lico,'  to  get  him  lynched,  on  early  acquaintance. 
Otherwise,  he  would  wind  up  with  all  the  belong- 
ings of  the  vicinity.  Omnivorous,  active  and  ener- 
getic is  this  same  Mr.  Rawdon  Clark, — withal  a 
very  smooth  package — and  he  gets  around  nimbly, 
— even  in  a  salon." 

They  were  on  their  way  homeward,  bent  on 
passing  the  location  of  the  Eveless  Paradise,  when 
Grimes,  after  firing  a  last  shot  at  Rawdon  Clark, 
in  calling  him  a  "heartless  human  snake,"  broke 
out, — "You  men  will  find  life  enough  in  old 
Rome!  It  does  not  seethe  around  you  as  in  the 
modern  Babylons,  but  the  inundation  of  the  Tiber, 
silent  and  unheralded,  has  swept  away  countless 
human  lives.  The  social  life  of  the  old  Mistress 
of  the  World  is  vastly  complex. 


ON  THE  PINCIAN  HILL.  27 

"I  knew  all  about  it  fifteen  years  ago, — now,  I 
confess  myself  a  tyro. 

"Old  McPherson,  the  photographer  and  club 
man,  who  has  been  here  forty  years,  tells  me  he 
has  been  only  hidden  in  a  groove,  and  so  wander- 
ing blindly!  People  go  down  here  like  in  a  tide 
rip,  without  a  single  cry." 

It  was  with  a  nod, — and  a  hearty  "al  rivedersi" 
— that  the  newspaper  cynic  disappeared  within  the 
portals  of  the  Eveless  Paradise  and  left  the  tyros 
to  wander  back  to  the  Hotel  de  Russie,  watched 
only  by  the  stars  and  the  becloaked  and  cocked- 
hatted  gens  d'armes,  lurking  on  the  dark  street 
corners. 


CHAPTER  II. 

ON  THE  PINCIAN  HILL. 

Though  Mr.  Forrest  Grimes  of  the  New  York 
Herald  was  a  grim  and  worn  cynic,  still  he  was  a 
man  with  a  strong  undercurrent  of  human  sym- 
pathy. He  had  rightly  divined  that  clouds  hov- 
ered over  Sidney  Landon's  abruptly  broken  off 
military  life. 


28  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

» 

After  the  Captain  had  sought  his  lonely  room, 
his  pillow  was  haunted  by  changing  visions  of  the 
past.  The  deep-toned  clang  of  Rome's  unnum- 
bered church  bells  only  accentuated  the  long  vigils 
in  which  dream  faces  returned  to  torture  the 
wound-weakened  soldier  into  a  vain  unrest. 

But,  the  keen-eyed  man  of  the  world  was  in 
error,  when  he  fancied  that  a  cloud  of  shame  or 
some  sudden  fall  from  honor  had  driven  Landon 
out  of  the  "Grays." 

Sorrow's  mantle,  alone,  hung  over  the  tossing 
soldier  as  he  recalled  the  scene,  on  the  far  away 
headwaters  of  the  Rio  Grande,  when  a  chance- 
found  newspaper  had  brought  the  shock  of  his  life 
to  the  iron-hearted  young  leader,  hidden  there  un- 
der the  mesquit  bushes  with  his  swarthy  cavalry- 
men, grimly  awaiting  the  coming  of  the  mad  Co- 
manche  riders.  And  all  his  beloved  army  life 
seemed  hateful  to  him  then ! 

Landon  vainly  tried  to  close  the  doors  of  the 
past  upon  these  haunting  visions, — the  memory 
mist-wreaths  which  hid  the  secret  which  had 
astonished  the  whole  "mess,"  when  Sidney  Lan- 
don sheathed  his  sword  and  abruptly  left  the 


ON  THE   PINCIAN   HILL.  29 

"Grays"  with  an  insistence  which  smacked  of 
some  imminent  crisis  not  otherwise  to  be  averted. 

Resolutely  pacing  his  room,  Landon  read  over 
his  official  instructions  and  sought  for  weariness 
in  the  platitudes  of  that  unromantic  red  book, 
labeled  "Consular  Regulations,"  which  was,  as 
yet,  a  terra  incognita  to  him. 

He  gazed  out  of  the  window  into  the  blue  and 
silent  night,  where  the  unfamiliar  outlines  of 
steepled  Rome  now  took  on  fantastic  shapes. 

"The  pen  may  be  mightier  than  the  sword,"  he 
sighed,  "after  all!  There's  Frank  Hatton,  dear 
old  resolute  soul,  deliberately  plodding  his  way 
upward  in  life,  with  not  a  single  quickened  beat  of 
the  pulse. 

"So  many  hours,  so  many  note  books  rilled — so 
many  days, — so  many  letters  dispatched ; — and, — 
the  beef  and  beer  of  life  is  thus  insured,  with  the 
unromantic  modern  garb  which  isn't  half  as  pic- 
turesque as  the  skin  mantles  of  the  Stone  age  after 
all." 

"Perhaps,  in  the  society  of  this  coterie  of  bright 
fellows,  I  may  find  forgetfulness."  So,  rolling  the 
stone  against  the  tomb,  he  ended  his  "night  of 
memories  and  of  sighs"  in  following  down  the 


30  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

chance-made  itinerary  of  his  long  voyage,  since  a 
lucky  introduction  from  a  college  friend  as  the 
Aurania  sailed  gave  him  the  bright-hearted  Hat- 
ton  as  a  fellow  traveler. 

It  had  been  pleasant  enough  after  all, — the 
chance  led  rambles  over  dewy  Ireland, — the  casual 
wanderings  by  Scottish  tarns, — the  restful 
glimpses  of  merrie  England,  the  wild  hurly  burly 
of  Paris,  and  the  gliding  panorama  of  the  castled 
banks  of  the  Rhine,  where  the  thrifty  steamer 
Ober-Kellner  now  replaces  "the  peasant  girls  with 
deep  blue  eyes,  and  hands  which  offer  early  flow- 
ers." 

Switzerland's  Alpen-locked  lakes, — the  superb 
defiles  of  the  Tyrol, — and  fair  Lombardy's  fruit- 
ful plains,  where  earth  bares  her  richest  bosom, — 
the  "frozen  music"  of  Milan's  Duomo, — the 
treasures  of  the  past,  in  the  dusky  chambers  by  the 
unfamiliar  Arno, — all  this  varied  panorama  had 
charmed  him  where  "under  many  a  yellow  star," 
they  "dropped  into  the  magic  land." 

But  one  temptation,  a  soul-racking  one,  had 
followed  him  on  from  Nice,  when  the  dear  old 
Consul  Swasey  had  sent  him  a  letter  by  special 
messenger.  It  was  a  letter  from  sturdy  old  Miles 


ON  THE  PINCIAN   HILL.  31 

Atwater,  the  Colonel  of  the  Grays,  forwarded  on 
through  the  War  and  State  Departments. 

Sidney  Landon  drew  the  letter  from  his  bosom 
and  read  it  once  more  by  the  flickering  light  of  the 
Hotel  de  Russie's  two  "superb"  wax  candles.  His 
heart  leaped  up  as  he  read  the  words  laden  with  a 
tempting  possibility — 

"The  President  has  promised  me  to  reinstate 
you  in  the  Army  at  any  time  within  six  months  if 
you  will  only  make  an  application.  General 
Hatcher  will  soon  be  at  Rome  and, — I  have  been 
charged  by  him  to  talk  to  you.  Remember,  my 
dear  boy !  'once  a  Captain, — always  a  Captain' — 
Listen  to  Hatcher.  Our  regimental  officers  are  all 
of  one  mind ;  you  could  be  appointed  in  the  Staff 
and  then  transferred  back  to  the  old  Regiment.  I 
may  come  over  myself  and  urge  this, — if  I  can  get 
leave.  And, — lastly,  Mrs.  Atwater  joins  me  in 
begging  you  to  reconsider  your  resignation.  You 
know  that  she  owns  you — for  she  nursed  you 
back  to  life — in  the  old  days!" 

"Gallant  old  heart!"  cried  Landon,  as  he  racked 
his  soul  in  an  agony  of  unrest !  Suddenly  starting 
up,  he  cried,  "Let  chance  decide!" 


32  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Tossing  up  a  coin,  he  muttered,  "Heads, — 
Army! — Tails,  I  stay  here!" 

His  face  was  pale  as  he  picked  up  the  two- 
franc  piece.  "I  am  to  be  a  Roman,"  he  mur- 
mured, with  a  sigh,  as  an  old  verse  returned  to 
haunt  him  now. 

It  was  a  soldier  song  of  the  days  of  the  civil 
war, 

"Never  again  on  the  shoulder,  to  wear  our  knightly  bars, — 
Never  again  on  the  shoulder,  to  bear  our  lordly  leaves, — 
Never  again  to  dream  the  dream 
Which  martial  music  weaves." 

And,  tired  out  at  last,  his  cares  fell  away  from 
him  then,  as  the  needles  are  shaken  from  the  gusty 
pines, — and  the  soldier  who  had  faced  the  Apache 
rifles  a  hundred  times  slept  until  the  bugles  of  a 
passing  Bersaglieri  corps  woke  him  from  dreams 
of  the  old  life, — the  beloved  Regiment, — and  the 
far  horizoned  western  plains  where  every  man 
guards  his  life  with  his  own  hapd ! 

"Do  I  look  decorously  professional,  Old  Reli- 
able?" cheerfully  queried  Landon  as  he  sallied 
forth  at  ten  a.  m.,  having  achieved  as  non-military 
a  toilet  as  the  habit  of  eleven  long  years  would 
permit. 


ON  THE  PINCIAN   HILL.  33 

The  friends  had  breakfasted  merrily  and  al- 
ready Hatton  was  delivering  over  their  effects  to 
Battisto,  the  factotum  of  the  Eveless  Paradise. 

"All  but  the  red  book, — that  smacks  too  much 
of  Baedeker,  and  that  enforced  martyrdom, — a 
ten  days'  rush  through  Rome,  'personally  con- 
ducted by  Thomas  Cook  and  Son.' ' 

"J'y  suis, — j'y  reste,"  gaily  cried  Landon. 
"That,  sir,  is  the  code  I  am  to  live  up  to,  now, — 
my  signal  book  for  battle  with  the  unterrified 
American  tourist.  I  am  off." 

"You  are  to  come  to  the  Consulate  General, 
after  you  have  hunted  up  the  Brandons,  and  duly 
made  your  social  report!" 

"I  will  begin  my  'arduous  labors'  by  asking  for 
a  day  off — to  arrange  my  urgent  private  affairs. 
It  might  be  well  to  inspect  the  cuisine  of  the  Eve- 
less  Paradise,  and  see  that  we  are  fed  not  upon 
tomtits  and  those  wretched  yellow  snails!" 

Hatton  merrily  rejoined,  "Grimes  awaits  us  at 
two  for  a  house-warming  breakfast,  and  will  guide 
us  to  the  Pincian  in  due  form,  and  will  show  us  all 
Rome  that  is  knowable.  So  away  with  you !  Make 
your  first  plunge !" 

As  Frank  Hatton  watched  Landon  stride  away, 

3 


34  ON  THE  PINCIAN  HILL. 

with  his  springy,  soldierly  step,  he  never  imagined 
that  the  crisis  of  a  life  had  been  passed,  and  that 
the  innocent  looking  letter  just  dropped  in  the  box 
bore  homewards  Landon's  firm  refusal  of  the 
President's  kindly  offer  to  take  up  again  the  old 
free  wild  life  of  the  plains,  under  the  fluttering 
silken  guidons  of  the  Grays. 

Many  an  approving  eye  followed  the  young 
American  as  he  strode  down  the  Via  Babuino,  a 
notable  contrast  to  the  faineants  dawdling  along 
the  Corso. 

"Photography  has  ruined  travel  now,"  mused 
Landon,  as  at  every  turn  familiar  objects  met  his 
eye.  "The  freshness  of  first  sensation  is  gone, — 
for,  in  all  this,  I  only  see  the  blurred  recollections 
of  the  Voyage  autour  de  ma  Chambre.  Every- 
thing turns  up  with  the  instant  suggestion,  'I  have 
seen  all  this  before — but,  where?' ' 

Resting  to  gaze  at  the  motley  throng  in  the 
Piazzi  di  Spagna, — Landon  culled  one  thought 
from  his  morning  glimpses  of  the  Corso  and  the 
Via  Babuino. 

He  finished  his  cigar  as  he  idly  scanned  the 
grouped  models,  after  he  had  escaped  the  onrush 


ON   THE   PINCIAN   HILL.  35 

of  the  cab  drivers,  and  the  clattering  attacks  of  the 
mutilated  beggars. 

"Nothing  seems  to  have  survived  of  the  olden 
beauty  of  the  women,"  he  mused.  "All  the  gar- 
nered loveliness  of  Italian  womanhood  in  the  gal- 
leries has  vanished  forever.  Perhaps  womanly 
beauty  is  only  transmitted  in  splendid  aristocracies 
or  floats  -down  the  dead  golden  tide  of  our  modern 
money  luxury.  Here, — only  a  few  officers  seem 
to  have  preserved  the  stately  old  Italian  beauty  of 
feature!  These  heroes  of  the  boudoir  and  the 
higher  priesthood  seem  to  be  the  only  classes  who 
can  now  cultivate  'la  hermosura'  in  a  fitting  idle- 
ness !  And — on  woman  here — lies  the  heavy  bur- 
den of  unending  drudgery!  The  glories  of  the 
Decameron  have  flitted  forever."  Landon  was 
ignorant  of  the  fact  that  the  whole  Continent  of 
Europe  is  paved  with  the  bones  of  the  woman 
drudge. 

The  man  who  had  breasted  the  cliffs  of  the 
Lava  Beds  laughed  at  the  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  steps  of  the  Scala  de  Spagna,  and,  then,  his 
face  grew  sober  as  he  turned  southeastwardly  and 
halted  at  the  open  archway  of  a  dingy  old  palace. 

"Sufficiently   threadbare  and   uninviting,"   he 


36  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

murmured  as  he  gazed  at  the  faded  glories  of  the 
hideous  oval  tin  consular  shield,  whereon  the 
eagle  of  our  country  ramped  in  ghastly  grays, 
blues  and  yellows. 

With  the  composure  of  Daniel  in  the  lions'  den, 
Captain  Sidney  Landon  ascended  two  sufficiently 
inconvenient  stairs  and  strode  into  the  main  room 
of  the  Consulate  General  of  the  United  States  of 
America. 

Nothing  relieved  the  utterly  repellant  interior, 
but  a  glimpse  of  blue  sky  at  the  open  windows, — 
the  gurgle  of  a  hidden  fountain  below  in  the  gar- 
dens where  waving  tree  tops  brushed  the  windows 
of  the  old  overhung  palace,  now,  in  its  decadence, 
given  over  to  a  pretentious  public,  economically 
aristocratic. 

Landon  had  already  sought  out  a  dozen  Amer- 
ican Consulates  in  their  skilfully  chosen  hiding 
places.  This  was  the  same  repellant  interior. 

Raw  red  tiled  floor, — wheezy  looking  tables, — 
fly-spotted  "affiches,"  and,  a  thin  array  of  chairs. 
A  few  sparsely  filled  book  shelves  carried  the 
sporadic  "archives,"  and,  at  the  door,  a  dejected 
Italian  youth,  the  possessor  of  a  mongrel  English, 
lay  on  watch  in  wait  for  the  bold  intruder. 


ON  THE  PINCIAN  HILL.  37 

By  a  lonely  window — a  pale-faced  American 
clerk  was  toiling  over  huge  blue  sheets  of  the 
sacred  despatch  paper — while,  at  the  end  of  the 
room,  well  fortified  behind  two  long  tables,  littered 
with  bundles  of  paper,— Signore  Jacopo  Maspero 
was  systematically  defending  himself  against  a 
motley  crowd  of  Americans  of  all  ages,  sexes  and 
"previous  conditions"  of  personal  experience. 

With  an  amused  smile,  Landon  finally  fought 
his  way  to  the  front  and  presented  his  card. 

With  an  obsequious  leap,  Signore  Maspero  rose 
and  led  the  Vice  Consul  General  within  his  fortifi- 
cation of  Dictionaries  and  Patent  Office  Reports. 

Tall,  dusky,  with  eyes  of  glowing  intensity, 
Signore  Maspero  furtively  warded  off  the  impa- 
tient crowd,  while  he  suavely  stated  that  he  would 
announce  the  new  official  to  his  Chief. 

Landon  laughed  inwardly  while  waiting  for  the 
return  of  the  detached  messenger,  and  idly 
scanned  his  own  pile  of  accumulated  letters,  as  he 
picked  up  from  Maspero's  rapid  despatch  of  busi- 
ness the  secret  of  official  duty. 

Every  one  seemed  to  ask  for  impossibilities. 
They  had  come  on  the  wrong  day  or  were  else 
doomed  to  hear  the  word  "Impossible"  uttered  in 


38  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

tones  of  silky  decision.  An  official  machine  grind- 
ing out  gruff  negations. 

Conscious  that  the  factotum  was  slyly  regard- 
ing him,  the  Captain  simply  bowed  formally, 
thrust  his  letters  in  his  pockets,  and  followed  the 
returned  messenger,  gracefully  escaping  the  out- 
stretched hands  of  several  fellow  citizens  bent 
upon  plucking  some  official  consolation  from  his 
coat  sleeves. 

It  was  only  the  prospect  of  the  castled  Tiber, 
gleaming  golden  in  the  bright  October  sunshine 
far  below,  which  stifled  a  sudden  pang  of  regret 
for  the  hasty  dispatch  of  the  letter  of  the  morn- 
ing. 

"I  may  live  if  I  keep  out  of  this  den,"  he  mur- 
mured as  he  walked  down  a  grand  old  gallery  to 
another  wing  of  the  palazzo.  "It  is  about  as  ro- 
mantic as  a  fourth-class  corner  grocery  in  its 
environment."  The  title  of  Vice  Consul  General 
seemed  to  have  a  cheaper  ring  in  its  announce- 
ment, after  gazing  upon  his  theatre  of  action. 

A  tap  from  an  old  carven  knocker  recalled  Lan- 
don,  as  he  entered  an  octagonal  room,  from  whose 
windows  the  rarest  vistas  of  Rome  were  visible. 

There  was  an  easel  in  a  fair  light,  and  a  slight, 


ON  THE  PINCIAN   HILL.  39 

delicate  man  courteously  advanced  to  meet  his 
visitor. 

In  a  moment,  Arthur  Melville  had  made  his  fel- 
low official  cordially  welcome. 

Landon  surveyed,  in  wonder,  the  superb  tapes- 
tries of  the  walls,  the  glowing  Persian  rugs  upon 
the  floor. 

Besides  a  huge  divan,  with  a  splendid  outspread 
tiger  skin  before  its  inviting  bulk,  the  only  piece  of 
furniture  in  the  room  was  a  rare  cabinet  of  antique 
ebony  and  ivory. 

Upon  this  stood  a  vase  of  matchless  old  Vene- 
tian and  a  Cellini  silver  misericorde  dagger  lay  by 
its  side. 

But  one  picture  hung  upon  the  walls — that  of  a 
thrill ingly  beautiful  woman,  with  one  rounded 
arm  displayed  as  she  drew  back  a  broidered  cur- 
tain, and, — a  rosy  ringer  pressed  upon  her  smiling 
lip! 

It  needed  not  the  word  "Invitation,"  graven 
upon  the  frame,  to  translate  the  witchery  of  the 
canvas. 

Sidney  Landon  leaned  back  and  laughed  softly 
in  the  anti-climax  of  the  surroundings  of  the  mo- 
ment. 


40  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Melville  clapped  his  hands  and  in  a  moment  old 
Joconda,  wrinkled  like  the  Fates,  had  served 
coffee  and  cigarettes. 

The  young  Captain  recognized  the  artist  in  his 
Chief's  delicate  features, — his  blue-veined  trans- 
parent hands, — the  slight  yet  graceful  mould  of 
form  and  the  waving  silken  hair. 

Clear  brown  eyes,  with  the  glassy  sheen  of  the 
idealist, — a  soft,  restrained  voice  and  a  manner  of 
modulated  courtesy,  proved  that  Arthur  Melville 
was  not  of  this  workaday  world. 

"I  fear,  Captain,"  he  gently  said,  "that  you 
found  the  Consulate  rather  uninviting."  Landon 
bowed  in  a  polite  deprecation. 

His  host,  however,  was  not  deceived. 

"I  see  but  little  of  it.  You  will  find  Deputy 
Vice  Consul  General  Maspero, — very  capable, — 
and  an  admirable  cicerone,  by  the  way.  Young 
Mr.  Morgan  is  untiring,  and, — I  believe  that  he  is 
intelligent.  He  is  an  official  Consular  clerk !  The 
other  people  will  give  you  no  trouble.  In  fact, 
Maspero  attends  to  all.  I  am  there  very  seldom 
myself!" 

"I  am  quite  ready  to  enter  at  once  upon  my 


ON  THE  PINCIAN  HILL.  41 

duties,"  resolutely  remarked  Landon,  "after  a  day 
or  so  to  settle  myself." 

The  quick-witted  Captain  could  see  that  there 
was  a  good  painting  light.  Melville's  tell-tale  eyes 
strayed  toward  the  beloved  canvas. 

"Then,  I  have  but  one  command  to  lay  upon 
you — Mrs.  Melville  will  be  happy  to  receive  you, 
at  dinner,  en  petite  comite,  to-night  at  eight!  I 
shall  leave  you  free  hand  as  to  the  office. 

"I  have  received  many  kindly  letters  regarding 
you,  and  we  will  surely  find  we  have  hosts  of 
friends  in  common.  We  shall  try  to  make  Rome 
pleasant  for  you." 

In  answer  to  the  artist  official's  query  as  to  his 
address,  Landon  was  charmed  to  hear  his  host 
say,  "Grimes  is  a  man  of  the  rarest  social  talents ! 
You  cannot  go  wrong  in  Rome  under  his  guid- 
ance! 

"He  is  the  head  of  'Young  Rome,'  and,  withal, 
a  man  of  the  rarest  gifts !" 

Landon  was  startled  at  the  sounding  echo  of  his 
own  footsteps  as  he  walked  away  through  the 
lonely  hall. 

"There  is  happiness" — he  mused — "a  man  who 
builds  his  own  dream  castles  and — lives  in  them. 


42  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

If  this  aesthetic  Puritan  has  found  his  fitting  mate 
in  Mrs.  Gertrude  Melville,  then — the  thorns  are 
few  in  his  rosy  pillow." 

Melville's  fortune,  breeding  and  powerful  polit- 
ical influence  had  kept  the  gentle  sinecure  many 
years  in  Rome,  most  judiciously  shielded  by  his 
office  absences  from  daily  carking  cares  and  offi- 
cial fret. 

There  was  an  unwonted  activity  in  the  Consul- 
ate General  as  Landon  entered.  A  desk  and  fit- 
tings had  been  skirmished  for,  and  before  the  rosy 
Hatton  arrived  to  drag  him  away,  the  Captain  be- 
gan to  admire  the  tireless  energy  and  easy  inso- 
lence of  the  indefatigable  Maspero. — He  was  re- 
lieved when  Hatton  pounced  down  upon  him. 

"Well?"  anxiously  demanded  Hatton,  as  the 
two  young  men  left,  after  a  few  pleasant  words 
with  the  pale  faced  Morgan,  a  consumptive  and 
intelligent  young  student  in  search  of  health,  who 
had  drifted  into  the  bare  subsistence  of  a  Con- 
sular clerkship  as  a  defense  against  the  wolf. 

Landon  laughed  gaily.  "It's  all  right!  Sig- 
nore  Jacopo  Maspero  seems  to  be  the  autocrat  of 
the  institution,  with  an  ostrich-like  capacity  for 
official  toil  which  I  shall  not  disturb.  He  seems  to 


ON  THE   PINCIAN   HILL.  43 

digest  everything.  Morgan  is  a  decent  little  chap 
enough.  My  chief  is  a  delightful  dreamer,  a 
thoroughbred,  and — I  am  to  meet  'la  dame 
blanche/  his  household  queen,  to-night  at  dinner. 
I  left  my  duty  cards.  To-morrow,  I  shall  make  all 
my  consular  calls  en  grande  tenue. 

"Ca  ira.  I  have  changed  my  mind.  I  shall  lock 
up  the  red  book  and  allow  Maspero  to  gradually 
instruct  me!  I  expect  to  become  wise  by  induc- 
tion !  And  you  ?  What  is  your  harvest  ?  Noth- 
ing but  leaves  ?" 

They  had  safely  steered  across  the  Piazza  de 
Spagna,  and  were  navigating  up  the  Corso,  with 
its  "trattorias," — its  show  windows  gleaming 
with  cheap  gewgaws  and  false  antiques, — its 
squalor  and  splendor, — its  tide  of  unexpectedly  fa- 
miliar tourists, — its  priests,  soldiers,  beggars  and 
loiterers,  before  Hatton  could  sketch  the  details  of 
his  visit  to  that  Promised  Land — Robert  Bran- 
don's studio. 

"It  looks  all  right  enough!"  rather  doubtfully 
concluded  Hatton,  loth  to  sit  in  harsh  judgment. 
"Of  course,  they  are  very  kind  and  all  that." 

"Brandon  is  coming  over  to  meet  us  at  Grimes' 
initial  breakfast.  By  the  way,  he  says  that  the 


44  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Eveless  Paradise  is  a  veritable  haven  for  us,  as 
Grimes  is  a  Defender  of  the  Faithful. 

"Just  the  man  to  post  you,  and  to  launch  me, 
journalistically.  Brandon  says  that  I  can  pick  all 
my  weekly  letters  by  feeding  on  these  fellows' 
freshness. 

"As  for  Brandon's  studio,  it  seems  to  be  only  an 
artistic  'bucket-shop/ — of  course — there's  a  union 
of  the  practical  and  the  ideal !  He  has  his  living  to 
make. 

"I'm  not  so  sure  about  his  pictures!  I  caught 
sight  of  two  or  three  young  Italians  working  up 
backgrounds  and  legs  and  arms." 

Landon's  laugh  made  the  melancholy  passers-by 
start. 

"Like  the  American  sculptors  with  a  squad  of 
twenty  Italian  stone  masons  hammering  out  mas- 
terpieces !" 

"Just  so,"  dryly  resumed  the  journalist. 

"But  the  overpowering  thing  is  Myra  Brandon. 
She  has  definitely  traced  out  our  relationship, 
moved  it  up  a  couple  of  degrees  and  several  gen- 
erations nearer!  She  is  a  human  battleship, — a 
multum  in  parvo!  She  has  simply  swooped  down 


ON  THE  PINCIAN  HILL.  45 

upon  me !  She  has  promptly  undertaken  to  make 
a  man  of  me !" 

Hatton  stopped  and  mopped  his  honest  brow. 

"And, — Rawdon  Clark?"  slowly  said  Landon, 
as  he  saw  Hatton's  brow  darken. 

"I  met  him,  there,  poking  over  Brandon's  pic- 
tures and  engaging  Mrs.  B to  matronize  a 

grand  dinner  which  he  is  to  give  at  the  Hotel  Cos- 
tanzi.  It  appears  he  has  some  lovely  American 
girl  here  in  his  eye — 'with  ulterior  views,'  of  mak- 
ing her  Mrs.  Croesus  Clark." 

"What  sort  is  he?"  anxiously  demanded  the 
Captain.  "I  think  that  he  is  a  thorough-paced 
cad,"  very  decidedly  replied  the  writer,  as  they 
saw  Grimes  waiting,  a  la  porte  du  Paradis,  to 
pounce  upon  them — "but,  I'll  know  more  after  to- 
morrow night. 

"I  have  to  dine  there  to  meet  him,  and  others. 
I  wish  he  were  out  of  my  way — but, — I  hear  that 
he's  a  fixture  here  as  long  as  Naera  of  the  golden 
hair  lingers." 

With  gleeful  rapacity,  Grimes  bore  down  upon 
his  two  neophytes  and  then  led  them  into  the  gen- 
eral assembly  room  of  the  Eveless  Paradise. 

There  was  a  hearty  welcome  awaiting  the  pil- 
grims at  the  table  where  two  draped  American 


46  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

flags  reminded  the  score  of  assembled  good  fel- 
lows of  the  land  for  whose  integrity  a  half  million 
brave  men  had  died  under  the  consecrated  folds. 

A  dozen  universities,  as  many  different  callings, 
and  a  baker's  dozen  of  different  states,  were  repre- 
sented in  the  bright-hearted  circle  of  gay  fellows 
under  thirty. 

Landon  had  been  led  away  to  see  his  two 
quaintly  romantic  chambers  where,  already,  Bap- 
tiste  had  laid  out  his  things,  when  the  merry 
breakfast  room  was  invaded  by  Mr.  Robert  Bran- 
don. 

The  soldier  vainly  tried  to  resist  the  infection 
of  the  artist's  all-round  manner. 

Portly  of  frame,  ruddy  of  hue,  cheery  and  in- 
sistent, with  a  dome-like  rounded  head  and 
banker-like  side  whiskers, — the  mercantile  artist 
deftly  oiled  the  hinges  of  every  unopened  human 
door  around  him. 

It  was  only  when  the  two  hours'  banquet  was 
waning  to  its  close  that  Landon  found  time  to 
whisper  to  Hatton :  "If  his  wife  is  a  fit  running 
mate,  I  can  easily  see  why  the  bucket-shop  studio 
is  a  go!" 

Whereat  Hatton  only  feebly  smiled,  for  he  was 


ON  THE  PINCIAN  HILL.  47 

now  firmly  entangled  in  the  meshes  of  the  Bran- 
don net,  and  doomed  to  fight  under  their  colors 
in  Rome — and,  in  his  heart  of  hearts,  he  felt  fated 
to  be  a  tout  for  the  social  pushing  off  of  those 
remarkable  canvases  wherever  Brandon  only  con- 
descended to  add  ears,  eyes,  hands  and  noses,  the 
tails  of  horses,  pretty  woman  under  the  tree,  and 
"such  small  deer,"  to  the  efforts  of  his  artistic  job 
workmen. 

Sidney  Landon,  too,  was  also  in  the  toils,  he 
had  fallen  a  victim  to  Brandon's  perfunctory  hos- 
pitality for  the  dinner  of  the  morrow.  No  friendly 
spirit  whispered  to  him  Mrs.  Myra  Brandon's 
parting  injunction  to  her  spouse  on  this  fateful 
morning,  "Remember,  Robert,  he  can  be  very 
useful  to  us  in  the  Consulate !  We  must  cultivate 
him !" 

Yet,  it  was  a  red-letter  day  when  the  last 
chorus  had  ceased,  the  nervous  Italian  countess 
upstairs  had  resumed  her  afternoon  nap,  and 
Grimes  escaped  with  his  prizes  in  a  charmingly 
appointed  carriage  for  a  long  drive  in  the  gardens 
of  the  Villa  Borghese. 

The  quickening  warmth  of  these  new  fellow- 
ships lightened  Sidney  Landon's  heart,  as  he 


48  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

watched  Frank  Hatton  delightedly  drinking  in  the 
veteran  Roman's  keenly  critical  babble,  while  they 
slowly  threaded  the  charming  groves  where  count- 
less hearts  have  beat  in  rapture  or  mutely  broken 
in  the  fierce  old  days  when  Roman  passion  seethed 
around  the  splendid  Papal  throne. 

"I  have  kept  the  best  for  the  last,"  sagely  ob- 
served Forrest  Grimes  as  the  sun  declined  to  its 
glorious  setting. 

They  were  enraptured  as  they  slowly  crowned 
the  beautiful  Pincio,  where  Nature  smiles  still  in 
her  unfading  beauty. 

Landon  sat  as  in  a  day  dream,  enjoying  the 
superb  view  from  the  terrace,  while  Grimes,  with 
deft  touches,  brought  up  the  old  days  when 
Lucullus  reigned,  the  supreme  arbiter  of  the  social 
world, — over  the  gardens  where  the  mad  Messa- 
lina  later  lit  the  torches  of  Venus  in  men's  throb- 
bing hearts. 

The  green-bowered  Villa  Medici,  with  its  gray 
turrets,  lay  there  under  Hadrian's  obelisk,  and, 
far  away, — the  huge  dome  of  St.  Peter's  hung 
like  an  eternal  benediction  over  the  Queen  City  of 
all  Time! 

Landon  listened  to  the  wind-borne  laughter  of 


ON  THE  PINCIAN  HILL.  49 

the  women  far  below  in  the  charming  Passeggiata, 
while  the  wooing  music  of  the  band  set  every  pulse 
beating  and  every  arched-stepped  foot  tapping 
with  Strauss'  dreamy  waltzes! 

There  were  double  lines  of  stately  carriages, 
now  slowly  moving  on,  while  groups  of  ardent 
cavaliers  leaned  over  the  low  sides,  murmuring 
loving  words  into  the  shell-like  ears  shaded  by 
the  protecting  fans. 

Sidney  Landon  forgot  to  listen  to  the  disser- 
tations upon  the  Castella  San  Angelo, — the  eter- 
nal Pantheon, — the  glories  of  the  Querinal,  and 
the  romance-haunted  banks  of  the  Tiber. 

"All  the  Roman  world  and  his  sister  are  here," 
merrily  said  Grimes,  in  a  change  of  key. 

"For  sheer  consolidated  love-making,  this  is 
the  garden  spot  of  God's  footstool,  and,  now  and 
then,  you  will  see  an  Italian  woman  who  is  not 

half  bad  looking, "  he  stopped  abruptly,  as 

Landon,  with  a  convulsive  gesture,  grasped  his 
arm, — "Do  you  know  who  that  is?"  the  Captain 
quickly  said,  while  his  voice  took  an  unwonted 
softness. 

"That's  Clark, — Rawdon  Clark, — the  American 
Croesus,"  briskly  replied  Grimes. 


50  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

But,  while  Frank  Hatton  craned  his  neck  to 
glance  at  his  new  master  once  more,  Captain 
Landon  made  no  sign.  His  eyes  were  very 
dreamy,  and  he  was  gazing  distraitly  at  a  re- 
ceding carriage. 

There  was  the  gleam  of  golden  hair, — the 
graceful  curve  of  a  neck  with  the  sweep  of  the 
Venus  of  Milo, — and,  a  sigh  from  Landon,  as  a 
high  break  with  a  party  of  Italian  military  dandies 
blocked  the  road  from  view.  He  was  strangely 
and  moodily  silent  for  the  rest  of  the  outing. 

They  drove  silently  back  in  the  sunset's  dying 
splendors,  but  all  Grimes'  diamond  wit  failed  to 
awaken  Landon's  flagging  interest. 

He  was  still  lingering  under  the  spell  of  eyes 
which  had  met  his  own  in  one  of  those  flashlight 
glances  thrown  across  life's  darkened  seas  which 
shine  out  unforgotten  through  all  the  lingering 
years. 

The  soldier  was  murmuring  those  words  of 
Buchanan  Read,  when  the  carriage  drew  up  with 
a  crash  at  the  narrow  gateway  of  the  Eveless 
Paradise, — 

"She  came  as  comes  the  summer  wind, — 
A  gust  of  beauty  to  my  heart." 


ON  THE  PINCIAN  HILL.  51 

But  his  lively  companions  were  now  deep  in  a 
plot  to  thrust  Hatton  into  the  "foremost  and  focal 
fire"  of  Rome's  intellectual  circles,  and,  hence, 
they  did  not  see  that  something  more  than  the 
glow  of  the  setting  sun  had  stolen  into  the  lonely 
soldier's  heart. 

It  was  under  the  soft  starlight  that  Sidney 
Landon  wandered  down  alone  to  the  Piazza 
Spagna,  after  leisurely  making  his  dinner  toilet. 
His  thoughts  were  not  at  his  own  command,  for 
as  he  crested  the  Scala  de  Spagna,  his  mind  was 
far  away  on  the  Pincian  Hill, — lingering  still  in 
contemplation  of  that  lovely,  womanly  apparition 
which  had  flashed  by  him  as  the  sunset  in  its  glow- 
ing blood-red  embers. 

"If  there  is  any  such  woman  in  the  world  as 
she  seems  to  be,"  he  mused,  "then, — beauty  has 
not  fled  from  Egeria's  bower.  And — she  did  not 
seem  to  be  an  Italian." 

He  was  still  in  a  dream  as  he  threaded  the  long 
hall  in  the  now  deserted  palazzo  on  the  hill. 

The  young  soldier  hardly  lifted  his  eyes  as  the 
butler  ushered  him  into  Mrs.  Gertrude  Melville's 
drawing  room.  There  was  that  softened  light 
which  ladies  love  in  the  splendid  apartment, 


52  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

though  silvery  gleams  lit  up  the  dining  hall  be- 
yond !  He  bowed  low  over  Mrs.  Melville's  hand 
as  that  incomparably  charming  lady  welcomed 
him  to  the  Eternal  City. 

And  then  all  the  blood  rushed  to  his  cheeks 
as  his  hostess  said,  "We  shall  be  a  little  party  of 
four!  Miss  Hawthorn,  Captain  Landon." 

There  was  a  tingle  in  every  bounding  pulse  as 
the  young  man  woke  from  his  day  dream  with  a 
start ! 

"I  think  we  met  to-day "  Miss  Agnes  softly 

said,  her  eyes  dropping  before  that  unconsciously 
ardent  glance. 

"On  the  Pincian,"  murmured  Landon,  as  he 
offered  the  goddess  his  arm. 


CHAPTER    III. 

AT  THE  TOMB   OF   CECILIA    METELLA. 

There  was  no  social  ice  to  break  in  the  little 
dinner  party,  for  sundry  little  radial  lines  of  sym- 
pathy had  already  been  traced  out  long  before 
the  matchless  Luigi  and  his  perfectly  trained  as- 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA.      53 

si  slants  had  reached  the  service  of  the  unapproach- 
able Italian  ices  and  confetti. 

Arthur  Melville  descended  from  the  cloudland 
of  art  long  enough  to  remind  Sidney  Landon  that 
General  Rufus  Hatcher  was  a  cherished  "ami  de 
maison." 

"My  poor  brother  Will  was  killed  on  his  staff 
at  Spottsylvania,"  sighed  the  dilettante,  "and,  the 
General  has  written,  congratulating  me  on  your 
coming  as  my  confrere  here!" 

"The  fact  is,  Captain,"  said  Melville,  "when  I 
accepted  this  post,  it  was  quasi  diplomatic !  The 
Vatican  Legation  had  been  abolished,  and  our 
Italian  Minister  Resident  was  then  located  at 
Florence. 

"We  have  grown  into  Rome ;  our  little  girl  was 
born  here, — and,  in  the  past,  the  holding  of  this 
sinecure  post  opened  all  the  art  treasures,  even 
those  of  the  reserved  chambers  of  the  Vatican,  to 
me! 

"Now  that  we  are  knitted  by  friendships  to  the 
shy,  proud  Italian  noblesse,  thanks  to  Gertrude, 
I  am  ready  to  yield  up  the  position. 

"The  pressure  of  tourist  and  business  relatives 
becomes  heavier  daily, — the  monetary  responsi- 


54  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

bilities  are  large, — and  General  Hatcher  writes 
me  wonders  as  to  your  executive  ability.  I  would 
feel  much  safer  to  see  the  office  under  your  con- 
trol. 

"I  sometimes  doubt  Maspero.  He  is  just  a  little 
too  smooth!  But,  Hatcher  declares  that  he  will 
have  you  back  in  the  army." 

Landon's  eyes  strayed  around  the  superb  apart- 
ment. It  was  easy  to  divine  that  the  gentle- 
hearted  artist  only  lived  in  the  realms  of  form 
and  color,  while  the  social  sway  of  the  family,  the 
executive  reins  of  their  daily  life,  and  all  sublu- 
nary matters  were  guided  by  the  firm  little  hands 
of  the  uncrowned  American  queen  who  had 
blessed  Melville's  life. 

Madame  Gertrude's  slight,  girlish  form, — her 
small,  well-poised  head, — her  steadfast,  brown 
eyes  shining  out  under  an  unruffled  brow,  proved 
the  woman  "nobly  planned." 

At  thirty-five  and  twenty-seven — the  pair  were 
still  notable  lovers,  and  Landon  easily  divined  the 
power  behind  the  throne  in  learning  that  Madame 
Gertrude  was  the  favorite  niece  of  one  of  Ameri- 
ca's colossal  money  magnates, — a  man  whose 
thunderbolts  easily  shook  financial  thrones. 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA.      55 

It  was  only  when  Melville  had  lured  Miss  Haw- 
thorn away  to  his  studio  for  a  short  art  colloquy 
that  Sidney  Landon  felt  relieved  of  the  imperial 
presence  of  the  young  goddess  of  the  Pincian. 

Little  Elsie  Melville,  a  lovely  sprite  of  five, 
flitted  before  the  visitor  a  new  charm  to  the  man 
who  was  beginning  already  to  doubt  the  eternal 
fitness  of  an  Eveless  Paradise. 

"I  must  make  friends  with  you,  Captain  Lan- 
don," said  the  hostess,  "for  I  am  anxious  to  see 
Arthur  shielded  and  aided  by  some  one  of  reso- 
lution and  courage! 

"The  frank,  bustling  American  does  not  easily 
penetrate  all  the  deep  subtlety  of  the  Italian 
character. 

"Of  all  countries  in  Europe,  we  assimilate  here 
the  least !  I  believe  in  putting  none  but  Ameri- 
cans on  guard." 

She  pointed  smilingly  to  the  two  silken  Ameri- 
can banners  glorifying  the  dusky  richness  of  the 

« 

stately  dining  room. 

"You  will  have  a  career  yet  in  diplomacy, 
though.  I  know  that  the  army  is  loth  to  lose 
you.  /  know  all!"  she  smilingly  said. 

"Colonel  Atwater  married  my  mother's  beloved 


56  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

schoolmate,  and  Mary  Atwater  has  been  already 
singing  your  praises.  I  shall  try  to  make  Rome 
so  pleasant  that  you  will  not  wish  to  leave  us!" 

Mrs.  Melville  saw  the  shade  of  grave  concern 
which  darkened  Landon's  face,  as  he  bent  over 
the  lovely  child,  his  hand  straying  through  the 
silken  wreath  framing  the  sweet  face. 

"Certainly,  you  will  be  at  my  disposal  as 
escort,"  lightly  resumed  Mrs.  Melville.  "Arthur 
is  wedded  to  his  art.  Time  is  fleeting,  and  I  am 
charged  with  unfolding  the  glories  of  Rome  to 
Agnes  Hawthorn.  We  shall  claim  a  share  of 
your  leisure,  and  I  hope  that  you  will  begin  slowly 
in  the  official  remodeling  of  the  office. 

"Frankly,  Signore  Maspero  looks  upon  you  as 
the  one  who  will  take  away  the  reins  of  his  power ! 
His  position  has  been  both  enviable  and  lucrative 
— for  an  Italian.  But,  he  needs  a  curb!" 

Captain  Landon  murmured  an  acquiescence, 
but  turned  his  head  away  to  conceal  a  deepened 
color. 

"Tell  me  of  Miss  Hawthorn,"  he  said,  with 
affected  carelessness. 

"You  see  her,  as  she  is,"  fondly  said  Gertrude 
Melville. 


OX    THIS  PIXCIAN"    *    *    *    AS   HE  OFFERED  THE  GODDESS 
HIS  AK-U.-Pag-e  52. 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA.      57 

"Our  families  have  been  linked  by  the  closest 
friendship  of  a  generation. 

"When  Agnes  was  left  an  orphan  by  the  death 
of  both  her  parents  in  a  fearful  Atlantic  ship- 
wreck, my  dear  mother  took  the  child  to  her 
heart.  With  all  her  enormous  fortune,  her  life  has 
been  lonely  enough. 

"Lawyers,  guardians  and  Philadelphia  Trust 
Companies  are  cheerless  surroundings  for  a 
woman  in  the  flower  of  her  beauty. 

"It  seems  sad,"  sighed  the  lady,  "that  such 
wealth  should  bring  down  the  jackal  tribe  of  for- 
tune hunters  upon  Agnes,  but  it  has! 

"Last  year  was  her  first  season.  Released  from 
the  gentle  tyranny  of  Bryn  Mawr,  Agnes  has  fled 
over  here  for  an  indefinite  stay.  Here  we  can,  in 
a  measure,  shield  her  for  a  time !  She  is  the  sister 
of  my  heart. 

"But,  alas,  her  splendid,  stately,  daily  life  at  the 
palatial  Hotel  Costanzi, — her  complete  establish- 
ment,— the  deference  of  bankers  and  shopkeepers 
draws  down  the  swarm  of  mournful-eyed  Italian 
Princes,  and  all  the  hungry  visiting  noblesse  flut- 
tering around  the  salons  of  the  best  circles 
here." 


58  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

Landon  gloomily  said,  "It  seems  that  women 
must  be  either  hunted  down  for  the  beauty  of 
their  skins,  or  else  trapped  for  the  gold  so  needful 
to  the  heiress  hunter." 

"It  is  too  bad,"  murmured  Mrs.  Melville. 
"Agnes  is  a  gifted,  bright-hearted  and  sincere 
woman.  She  should  not  meet  her  fate  under  false 
lights !  She  is  only  happy  and  at  home  with  us, 
in  our  little  circle. 

"The  Brandons  are  distant,  very  distant  con- 
nections. There  is  some  Kentucky  cousinship, 
very  remote,  with  Robert  Brandon.  You  will 
dine  there  to-morrow  night,  you  tell  me!  You 
will  see  a  strange  social  menagerie,"  Gertrude 
Melville  laughed  merrily. 

"Robert  Brandon  is  a  bustling,  fatuous  soul, — 
profoundly  happy  in  a  colossal  vanity, — and  his 
art  rooms  are  carried  on  'for  revenue  only.'  He 
is  harmless  enough  in  his  own  bourgeois  way ! 

"His  wife,"  said  Gertrude,  with  a  determined 
flash  of  her  eyes,  "is  a  distinct  social  meddler, — 
an  intrigante, — a  busybody, — and  determined  to 
force  the  attentions  of  this  nouvean  riche  man- 
eater  Rawdon  Clark  upon  my  lovely  friend. 

"And  so,"  she  decisively  said,  "Agnes  is  forced 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA".       59 

to  take  refuge  in  visits  to  me,  which  baffle  the 
'Encyclopedia.' 

"Arthur  always  wages  a  determined  war  upon 
Brandon's  alleged  art,  and  so  our  home  is  'terra 
incognito'  to  that  faction." 

It  was  easy  to  see  the  chevaux  de  frise  fencing 
out  the  Brandons. 

When  Elsie  Melville  had  been  duly  kissed  and 
sent  to  the  Land  of  Nod,  Landon  rapidly  seized 
upon  the  pith  of  his  hostess'  remarks,  while  the 
return  of  his  host  and  Miss  Hawthorn  gave  him 
a  breathing  spell,  while  the  fair  visitor  and  the 
enthusiast  fought  over  again  their  battle  as  to 
respective  art  values  of  the  Venus  of  the  Capitol 
and  the  Florentine  marvel. 

The  chatter  of  Grimes  returned  to  enlighten 
him, — Hutton's  remarks  as  to  Clark's  career, — 
the  presence  of  the  capitalist  dogging  Miss  Haw- 
thorn's carriage  in  the  Pincian,  and  the  pro- 
jected diner  de  societe, — all  these  were  pregnant 
with  social  meaning. 

"The  campaign  is  already  laid  out,"  mused  the 
soldier,  "Mr.  Rawdon  Clark  probably  knows  of 
this  solid  Philadelphia  fortune, — of  the  pyramidal 
social  position  of  the  Hawthorns. 


60  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

"The  closed  doors  of  mansions  and  clubs  would 
soon  open  to  Agnes  Hawthorn's  husband, — and 
the  financial  magnates  would  unbend  to  the  pow- 
erful stranger  once  anchored  down  locally !  For, 
people  buy  everything  now, — seats  in  the  Senate, 
— the  dignity  of  Governor,  and,  even  all  the  trap- 
pings of  the  First  Citizen." 

The  soldier's  eye  rested  gravely  upon  that 
ardently  enthusiastic,  woman  face,  flower-like,  in 
its  beauty. 

Nineteen  golden  years  were  reflected  in  the 
maiden's  sunny  hair,  the  violets  of  all  the  happy 
springs  in  those  deep-lashed,  splendid  eyes.  The 
splendor  of  youth  modeled  the  superb  lines  of  her 
figure. 

Landon's  memory  recalled  Eugenie  de  Montijo 
in  that  vernal  loveliness  which  swept  the  cold- 
hearted  Bonaparte  off  his  feet  and  changed  the 
destiny  of  France. 

The  flute-like  voice  had  lulled  him  until  he 
woke  with  a  start  as  Miss  Hawthorn  directly  ad- 
dressed him. 

"If  I  mistake  not, — Captain  Landon, — I  owe 
your  gallant  regiment  an  unpaid  debt  of  sorrow- 
ing gratitude.  You  knew  my  cousin  Willy  Grear, 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA.      61 

who  died  at  the  hands  of  those  frightful  Utes?" 

"He  was  my  beloved  classmate,  Miss  Haw- 
thorn," gravely  answered  the  soldier. 

"Then,"  cried  Agnes  Hawthorn,  clasping  her 
jeweled  hands  in  a  sudden  emotion.  "You  can 
tell  me  the  name  of  the  young  Cavalry  officer 
who,  with  three  men,  repelled  the  murderers  and 
saved  him  from  the  last  horrible  mutilation  of 
Indian  warfare!" 

"I  have  heard  of  the  occurrence, "answered  Lan- 
don,  rising  suddenly.  "I  think  it  was  in  1878, 
but  I  do  not  now  remember  the  officer's  name." 

"He  was  of  your  own  regiment,  the  Grays," 
the  heiress  persisted,  "and, — in  my  girlish  school- 
days, I  vowed  to  find  out  the  man  who, — alone, — 
exposed  himself  to  the  red  men's  fire,  while  his 
little  party,  from  a  safe  ambush,  turned  back  the 
murderous  brutes  with  their  rifles!  For  such  a 
man, — I  could  go  around  the  world, — only  to 
tell  him,"  she  said  with  sparkling  eyes,  "what  an 
American  woman  thinks  of  a  brave  man !" 

Mrs.  Melville  started  at  the  sudden  pallor  of 
Landon's  face. 

"Excuse  me,"  he  said.  "The  hour  is  already 
late,  and — "  he  said  lightly,  "I  must  go  into 


62  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

official  harness  in  the  morning.  I  shall  have  the 
honor  of  meeting  you,  I  believe,  at  dinner  to- 
morrow evening  at  the  Brandons." 

When  the  young  soldier  had  made  his  graceful 
adieux,  the  two  women  gazed  blankly  at  each 
other. 

"There  must  have  been  something  very  pain- 
ful," murmured  Agnes,  "in  these  old  recollections. 
I  am  told  that  classmates  become  deeply  attached 
to  each  other  at  West  Point!" 

Gertrude  Melville  was  still  lost  in  astonishment 
at  Landon's  abrupt  departure,  when  her  husband 
returned  from  escorting  his  guest  to  the  cavernous 
stairway  of  "il  grande  palazzo  vecchio." 

In  one  hand  he  held  his  office  keys, — in  the 
other,  a  gray  pasteboard-bound  Army  Register. 
Arthur  Melville  smiled  knowingly  as  he  said, 
"Ladies!  I  will  read  to  you  from  the  Medal  of 
Honor  record  of  1878: 

"First  Lieutenant  Sfdney  Lafidon,  th  U. 

S.  Cavalry,  medal  of  honor  for  heroic  gallantry 
in  personally  exposing  himself  to  the  fire  of  a 
hostile  band  of  Utes  to  draw  their  fire,  while  his 
detachment,  from  safe  position,  inflicted  the 
heaviest  loss  upon  the  enemy,  thus  rescuing,  un- 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA.      63 

mutilated,  the  body  of  Captain  William  Grear, 
U.  S.  Ordnance,  who  had  been  treacherously 
slain." 

Agnes  Hawthorn  sprang  up,  standing  there, 
— beautiful,  thrilling,  living  statue,  with  her  hands 
crossed  upon  her  bosom,  as  Melville  quietly  closed 
the  book. 

"When  you  next  meet  him,  Agnes,"  he  simply 
said,  "you  can  say,  'Thou  art  the  man!' ' 

There  were  diamond  tears  fringing  the  beau- 
tiful lashes  as  the  young  goddess  silently  clasped 
Gertrude  Melville's  hands! 

"God  bless  him,"  murmured  the  young  mother, 
as  she  led  her  speechless  guest  away  to  the  hap- 
piest of  slumbers. 

Far  below  them,  Sidney  Landon  was  stalking 
through  the  shadowed  Piazza  de  Spagna. 

"They  must  never  know !"  he  muttered,  as  the 
mist  of  years  rolled  away  and  he  saw  once  more 
the  gray  hills  of  Utah, — and  the  crack  of  rifles, 
long  silent,  came  back  to  memory.  "It  was  not 
much,  after  all, — any  good  man  would  have  done 
the  same." 

Landon  was  strangely  silent  in  the  bright  Val- 
halla of  the  Eveless  Paradise,  where  Frank  Hat- 


64  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

ton  was  the  center  of  a  lively  bevy  of  the  foreign 
literate  of  the  Eternal  City. 

The  son  of  old  Rutgers  had  already  projected 
"works''  of  great  magnitude  under  the  inspiration 
of  the  scenes  storied  in  his  youthful  classic  dig- 
ging- 

Hatton  marveled  when  they  reached  their 
apartment  at  Landon's  brief  comment  upon  the 
Melville  establishment  over  the  last  evening  pipe. 

"Nice  enough  people,"  remarked  the  soldier, 
with  a  crafty  guile  newly  born. 

"They  all  seem  to  be  very  fond  of  Grimes. 
Melville  tells  me  that  he  holds  the  highest  possible 
social  position  compatible  with, " 

"Working  for  a  living,  you  mean!  Out  with 
it!"  good-naturedly  said  Hatton.  "But  they  tell 
me,  all  here,  that  Melville's  home  is  a  fairy  palace, 
— marble  halls  and  all  that !  They  are  gilt-edged 
swells,  rich  as  cream  and  can  buy  out  a  lot  of  the 
Colonnas  and  Orsinis." 

"They  are  all  well  enough,"  wearily  said  Lan- 
don.  "I  am  only  an  incident  of  their  lives !  The 
lady  is  a  witching  fairy,  sweet  and  earnest,  and 
is  a  niece  of  the  great  Ogden  Mowbray !" 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA.      65 

Hatton's  whistle  of  astonishment  gave  way 
to  a  last  query.  "Anybody  else  there?" 

"Nobody  to  speak  of!"  remarked  the  Captain, 
as  he  knocked  out  his  pipe.  "From  what  I  hear 
we  will  have  a  song  and  dance  entertainment  at 
the  Brandons!" 

"Yes!"  gloomily  answered  Hatton,  "and  that 
despotic  cad,  Rawdon  Clark,  has  sent  me  a  letter 
to  call  on  him  at  the  American  Club  to-morrow7 
at  eleven,  'to  learn  his  wishes  governing  my  letters 
from  Europe !' ' 

Sidney  Landon  was  glad  to  escape  into  his  own 
apartment,  where  he  sat  for  an  hour  gazing  out 
into  the  night. 

The  face  of  "nobody  to  speak  of"  returned  to 
haunt  him,  and  he  saw  her  again,  with  that 
sweetly  impassioned  face! 

"I  would  go  through  the  whole  Ute  tribe  for 
such  a  woman,"  mused  the  lonely  man,  as  he  laid 
his  head  upon  his  pillow.  "Strange  that  we  should 
both  be  alone  in  the  world!  That  fellow  Clark 
must  be  a  nice  specimen  of  'true  American  man- 
hood !'  " 

There  was  one  supremely  happy  man  in  Rome 
upon  the  morrow  of  this  initial  entree  of  Captain 


66  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

Sidney  Landon  into  Roman  life.  That  man  was 
the  pale-faced  Consular  Clerk  Edwin  Morgan, 
who,  open-eyed  in  wonder,  heard  the  Consul  Gen- 
eral inform  Signore  Jacopo  Maspero  that  hence- 
forth Vice  Consul  General  Landon  would  assume 
the  entire  active  management  of  the  office. 

"Captain  Landon  will  receive  all  your  reports 
and  use  my  name  without  question,"  suavely  said 
the  happy  artist,  as  he  fled  away  to  save  three 
hours  of  splendid  painting  light.  It  was  a  consular 
upheaval ! 

There  was  a  suppressed  scowl  on  Maspero's 
face  as  Landon  took  his  seat,  with  a  quiet  dignity, 
at  the  official  opening  hour.  "I  shall  now  turn  all 
over  to  you,  Signore  Capitano?"  sulkily  said  the 
Italian. 

"By  no  means,  remarked  Landon,  with  a 
searching  glance  of  his  steady  eyes.  "I  shall  pro- 
ceed to  make  a  thorough  examination  of  the  whole 
office  accounts  for  the  past  ten  years. 

"As  Mr.  Morgan  is  a  perfect  Italian  scholar, 
he  will  hereafter  conduct  all  business  jointly  with 
you,  and  he  will  represent  me!  I  have  a  State 
Department  order  to  engage  another  copyist,  and 
he  will  relieve  Mr.  Morgan.  I  desire  no  business 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA.      67 

of  importance  to  be  transacted  which  I  do  not 
personally  supervise.  But  you  can  get  orders  from 
Mr.  Morgan  in  all  things  without  waiting  for 
me." 

The  Italian  bowed  in  silence. 

The  wandering  American  public,  gathering  in 
at  the  hour  of  ten,  found  a  singular  courtesy  in 
Signore  Maspero's  new  manner,  and  the  crafty 
Italian  smothered  an  oath  when  he  observed  his 
new  Chief  and  the  young  student  depart  for 
luncheon  together. 

"This  will  be  our  general  rule,  Signore,"  re- 
marked the  Vice  Consul  General. 

And  thus  the  reign  of  King  Stork  in  that  Con- 
sulate General  came  to  an  end,  giving  way  to  one 
soon  destined  to  revolutionize  the  methods  which 
had  dealt  out  humble  pie  in  large  quantities  to  the 
distracted  tourist. 

Captain  Sidney  Landon  was  in  a  fairly  cheerful 
mood  when  the  loyal  Hatton,  with  much  flourish, 
presented  him  to  the  hostess  of  the  evening  at 
Mrs.  Myra  Brandon's  resplendent  establishment 
on  the  Via  Babuino. 

An  imposing  woman  of  an  impressive  middle 


68  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

age  was  Madame  Myra,  firmly  insistent  in  voice 
and  manner. 

Fortified  in  network  of  chain  and  bangle, — with 
suspiciously  raven  hair,  and  piercing,  round  un- 
smiling black  eyes,  the  wave  of  her  fan  or  the 
side  glance  of  her  watchful  orbs  brought  the  bus- 
tling Brandon  to  her  side  at  once. 

"I  can  only  make  my  peace  by  buying  a  pic- 
ture," mused  Landon.  "I  wonder  if  there  are  any 
very  small  ones!" 

But  the  walls  were  only  resplendent  with  the 
hugest  spoils  of  Brandon  &  Co.'s  artistic  bows 
and  spears, — regular  wall  coverers. 

Landon  was  awaiting  the  awful  moment  of 
dinner  assignment  when  Mr.  Brandon  descended 
upon  him. 

"Captain,  allow  me,"  the  host  exclaimed,  as  he 
dragged  the  young  official  into  a  corner  and  pre- 
sented him  to  Mr.  Rawdon  Clark. 

The  eyes  of  the  two  men  met  in  that  quiet,  in- 
stantaneous assumption  of  hostility  with  which 
nature  has  endowed  certain  antagonistic  souls. 

As  Landon  escaped,  he  could  not  but  hear  the 
loudly  whispered  aside  of  the  man  of  money : 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA.      69 

"Army  fellow — isn't  he?  I  hear  he  has  some 
place  in  the  Consulate." 

But  Landon  forgot  to  contemplate  the  outer 
man  of  Croesus  as  Mrs.  Brandon  flusteringly  fell 
upon  Miss  Agnes  Hawthorn,  the  latest  arrival. 

"Now,  our  golden  circle  is  complete!"  gushed 
the  hostess.  "Mr.  Clark,  you  will  take  in  Miss 
Hawthorn  ?" 

"Pardon  me  one  moment,"  coldly  remarked 
Miss  Hawthorn,  as  Captain  Landon  bent  over  her 
hand. 

"Mrs.  Montgomery,  let  me  present  Captain  Lan- 
don," she  said  as  the  soldier  was  made  acquainted 
with  the  sweet-faced  widowed  woman'  who  was 
the  Grand  Inside  Guard  of  the  heiress'  daily  life. 

Miss  Agnes  was  a  dream  of  beauty  in  her  cling- 
ing robes  of  white  with  a  corsage  knot  of  Parma 
violets.  She  found  time  to  whisper  to  the  cavalry- 
man, "You  are  strangely  forgetful  of  names,  sir! 
I  have  learned  how  you  won  your  medal  of 
honor!" 

Before  Landon  had  raised  his  eyes,  he  was 
whisked  away  by  the  voluble  hostess. 

"As  our  ranking  United  States  officer,  you 
have  the  place  of  honor,  at  my  side,  sir." 


70  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

In  all  the  clatter  of  the  polyglot  circle,  Landon 
did  not  forget  the  keen,  vulpine  craft  of  the 
woman  who  had  nailed  Agnes  Hawthorn  to  the 
pillory  of  public  attention  as  Rawdon  Clark's  pos- 
sible matrimonial  prey. 

The  Austrians,  Russians,  French  and  Italians 
chattered  around  that  noisy  board,  devouring  the 
gathered  American  beauties  with  their  eyes,  while 
Landon  strove  to  shut  his  ears  to  Brandon's  boast- 
ful announcement  of  the  purchase  of  his  two  great 
historical  pictures  by  "my  friend,  Mr.  Clark." 

"Such  a  fascinating  man, — a  wonderful  man, 
Captain,"  raved  on  the  hostess. 

"He  has  ordered  his  architect  to  build  a  gallery 
in  his  new  house  especially  for  the  'Boadicea 
Beaten  with  Rods,'  and  The  Death  of  Alaric!' 
Oh !  if  only  more  Americans  were  like  him !" 

The  soldier  quietly  "sized  up"  the  hard-featured 
capitalist  at  Agnes  Hawthorn's  side. 

Rawdon  Clark's  outer  man  was  perfectly  en 
regie — "Has  a  good  valet,"  murmured  the  Cap- 
tain. 

The  man  himself,  on  the  sunny  side  of  forty, 
sturdily  built,  with  a  strongly  cast  face,  carried  in 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA.      71 

his  cool,  gray  eyes  and  heavy  jaw  the  ear-marks 
of  personal  power. 

Closely  waving  wiry  dark  hair, — a  slightly 
frosted  mustache, — firmly  set,  pitiless  lips,  and 
a  heavily  cleft  chin,  with  the  sternly  carven  facial 
lines  of  the  financial  operator,  the  whole  ensemble 
denoted  the  "Silver  King"  type, — the  man  who 
had  arrived,  through  desperate  struggle  and  soul- 
eating  persistence. 

"Not  a  fellow  to  tackle  lightly,"  thought  the 
soldier,  "and,  a  man  who  will  have  a  good  deal 
of  his  own  way." 

There  was  one  memory  of  the  Brandon  dinner 
which  never  faded  from  Landon's  mind.  It  was 
the  furtive  inventorial  glance  with  which  Clark 
surveyed  the  proud  young  beauty  at  his  side. 

Miss  Hawthorn  seemed  to  have  developed  a 
slightly  glacial  manner,  when  the  long  drawn  out 
feast  ended ! 

And,  she  seemed  to  have  reserved  her  smiles 
largely  for  the  courtly  old  Count  Esterholz,  the 
Austrian  minister,  seated  at  her  other  side,  for  the 
old  bon  vivant  was  the  soul  of  courtesy,  de  la 
vieille  roche. 

But  once  during  the  dinner  did  Landon  catch  a 


72  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

fleeting  glance  from  the  lovely  eyes  which  had 
spoken  so  eloquently  to  him  at  their  meeting. 
And  their  friendly  gleams  seemed  to  say,  "Wait ! 
Wait!" 

With  a  quiet  decision,  Sidney  Landon  ignored 
Brandon's  officious  cordiality  when  the  ladies  re- 
tired. "I  do  not  take  wine,"  he  decisively  re- 
marked, as  he  rose  to  follow  the  ladies. 

"You  are  a  poor  army  man,  then !"  sharply  in- 
terjected Rawdon  Clark,  who  had  just  made  an 
autocratic  sign  to  Hatton.  "Did  you  address 
me?"  sternly  demanded  the  soldier. 

And,  strangely  enough,  the  millionaire  was 
silent  as  Landon  passed  out  into  the  drawing 
room.  "He  dropped  his  eye,  at  any  rate,"  mused 
Landon,  as  he  sought  the  side  of  Mrs.  Montgom- 
ery. 

The  little  artifice  succeeded,  for  in  a  few  mo- 
ments Miss  Hawthorn  joined  her  chaperone. 

In  the  dining  room,  Clark  had  found  a  tardy 
consolation  in  remarking,  "Brandon,  your  friend 
is  pretty  sharp  set  for  a  broken  down  army  officer ! 
Cut  him  out  of  my  dinner  list !" 

There  was  a  gloomy  silence  between  the  two 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA.       73 

friends  as  Hatton  and  Landon  walked  home 
through  the  deserted  Via  Babuino. 

At  last  the  journalist  broke  into  angry  speech. 
"Do  you  know  that  cur  Clark  has  actually  ordered 
me  to  attend  his  swell  dinner  for  Miss  Hawthorn 
at  the  Hotel  Costanzi  and  to  'feature  it'  for  the 
journal !  I  think  that  I  will  resign !" 

"Nonsense,  my  boy,"  coolly  answered  the  Cap- 
tain. "Don't  fall  out  at  the  first  skirmish !" 

"He  is  a  brute  and  a  tyrant,"  indignantly  cried 
Hatton,  now  thoroughly  out  of  temper.  "He  is 
giving  me  a  lot  of  slush  about  his  art  treasures  and 
his  new  home — and — he  darkly  intimates  that  this 
pretty  Miss  Hawthorn  is  to  be  its  future  mis- 
tress !" 

"Oh!  He  does — does  he?  Well!  Damn  his 
impertinence!"  cried  Landon  as  they  regained 
their  abode. 

That  night  a  new  feeling  of  cold  isolation  in  the 
world  possessed  the  lonely  soldier.  "It's  the  old 
Juggernaut  business,"  he  growled.  "I  suppose,  as 
usual,  money  will  have  its  way." 

A  month  later,  the  glories  of  Mr.  Rawdon 
Clark's  superb  feast  were  forgotten  save  by  the 
distant  readers  of  Hatton's  unwilling  tribute. 


74  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

The  Roman  season  was  briskly  coming  on,  and 
the  American  colony  had  set  up  an  idol  in  the 
shape  of  the  dignified  and  effective  Vice  Consul 
General. 

It  was  true  that  the  gossips  wondered  to  see  the 
handsome  young  soldier  choose  Arthur  Melville's 
fairy  child  Elsie  as  his  companion. 

The  Quirinal  Gardens,  the  Borghese,  and  the 
Pincian  knew  the  strangely  assorted  pair.  All 
Rome  soon  knew  of  the  little  coterie  at  Melville's 
home  which  now  embraced  the  honest-hearted 
Hatton, — that  accomplished  scribe,  Forrest 
Grimes, — and  the  energetic  Vice  Consul. 

The  absence  of  the  whole  American  official 
circle  from  Mr.  Rawdon  Clark's  superb  feast  at 
the  Hotel  Costanzi  had  convulsed  the  three  dis- 
tinct circles  of  American  Roman  society,  the  man- 
sion and  villa  people, — the  students  and  pension 
boarders — and  the  feverish  tourist  guests  of  the 
Hotels. 

And,  yet,  in  the  artistic  circles,  the  shining  face 
of  Mrs.  Myra  Brandon  was  in  evidence.  The 
loudly  heralded  purchase  of  Mr.  Rawdon  Clark's 
third  acquisition,  "Regulus  Before  the  Roman 
Senate,"  had  been  duly  advertised  in  the  "Phila- 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA.      75 

delphia  Mail,",  which  estimable  journal  also  ex- 
ploited the  preliminary  plans  of  the  Honorable 
Rawdon  Clark's  marble  palace,  "soon  to  rise  upon 
the  banks  of  the  Schuylkill." 

There  was  a  quiet  content  in  the  Eveless  Para- 
dise on  the  Corso,  where  Frank  Hatton  "snatched 
a  fearful  joy"  in  digging  away  at  his  forthcoming 
book,  "Modern  Relics  of  Ancient  Rome." 

The  honest-hearted  fellow  marveled  greatly  at 
the  changed  manner  of  Captain  Sidney  Landon. 
This  young  official  had  suddenly  developed  a 
strange  taste  for  the  red  Consular  Book  and  toiled, 
late  and  early,  in  the  Consulate  General,  working 
till  the  wee  sma'  hours  upon  his  comprehensive  re- 
view of  the  accounts  and  archives. 

A  dull  smouldering  anger  burned  in  Signore 
Jacopo  Maspero's  bosom  since  he  had  delivered 
the  keys  of  the  safe  and  office  over  to  Consular 
Clerk  Morgan,  now  revitalized  by  the  kindness 
of  the  young  Chief. 

While  it  was  true  that  Captain  Landon  had  left 
a  card  on  all  the  American  residents  who  boasted 
Lares  and  Penates, — still  the  society  circles  saw 
little  of  his  handsome  face. 

It  was  true  that  he  acted  gravely  as  Vestryman 


76  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

at  the  one  Episcopal  Church  and  that  he  had  re- 
vived his  boating  with  Charley  Hollingsworth. 

There  were  some  whispered  colloquies  between 
dashing  Elaine  Hollingsworth,  the  cautious  Ger- 
trude Melville  and  the  enraptured  Consul  General, 
now  left  free  to  soar  in  the  artistic  Empyrean. 

"He's  a  famous  fellow  is  Landon,"  remarked 
Arthur  Melville,  "and, — I  hoped  he  would  take 
kindly  to  Agnes  Hawthorn. 

"But,"  the  good  man  sighed,  "beyond  our  Elsie, 
and  your  two  roguish  cherubs,  Hollingsworth — 
the  man  seems  devoid  of  all  social  sympathy! 
Have  you  noticed  that  he  only  comes  here  when 
our  little  coterie,  'The  Five  Spot,'  meets?  He 
has  taken  to  roaming  alone  from  Ostea  to  Tivoli, 
from  Palestrina  to  Frascati." 

"Has  he  no  Egeria — this  all  too  romantic 
young  Numa  Pompilius?"  demanded  Charley 
Hollingsworth,  who  was  the  leading  spirit  in  the 
Flirting  Club  known  as  "the  Devil's  own." 

"Don't  be%a  goose,  Charley,"  imperiously  cried 
his  wife.  "There's  Agnes  Hawthorn,  the  hand- 
somest woman  in  Europe  to-day, — why  he  has 
only  left  a  formal  duty  card  upon  her  at  the  Cos- 
tanzi !" 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA.       77 

"By  the  way,"  murmured  the  silenced  Rollings- 
worth,  pulling  his  long  yellow  mustache  nerv- 
ously, "the  American  Club  fellows  are  betting  two 
to  one  on  this  cold-hearted  fellow  Clark  marrying 
your  peerless  Agnes!  He's  an  insufferable  cad 
and  so  already  assumes  open  airs  of  proprietor- 
ship." 

Gertrude  Melville's  pretty  lips  curled  in  an  un- 
disguised sneer.  "That  oaf — that  promoted  fore- 
man,— marry  Agnes — never !  Agnes  in  her  own 
quiet  way  is  as  proud  and  distant  as  Landon — ," 
the  little  queen  checked  herself  with  a  resolute 
prediction. 

"She  never  will  enter  Rawdon  Clark's  marble 
palace !  The  whole  siege  is  kept  up  by  those  stuffy 
Brandons.  I  think,"  slowly  said  the  dainty  Ger- 
trude, "that  Captain  Landon  is  only  fighting  with 
his  stubborn  pride  about  going  back  into  the  army ! 

"Next  month,  General  Hatcher  will  be  here, 
and — perhaps  the  Atwaters !  They  will  draw  him 
out!" 

"You  may  be  right!"  mused  Arthur  Melville, 
"but  he  has  developed  a  strange  frenzy  for  work 
and  a  misanthropy  unsuited  to  his  years. 

"To  all  that,  he's  the  finest  fellow,  by  all  odds, 


78  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

who  ever  entered  the  Consular  service.  I'd  resign 
in  his  favor,  in  a  moment,  if  his  pride  were  not  a 
barrier." 

Gertrude  Melville's  beautiful  brown  eyes  were 
very  dreamy.  She  reflected  that  Sidney  Landon's 
pride  did  not  prevent  him  from  hearing  the  light 
fall  of  Agnes  Hawthorn's  pretty  feet  every  time 
that  particular  young  goddess  illumined  the  dark 
gallery  of  the  Palazzo  Vecchio. 

A  smile  softened  the  curves  of  her  rosy  lips. 
"Wait  and  hope!"  she  murmured.  With  a  quick 
womanly  divination  she  had  guessed  the  secret  of 
the  revolt  of  Landon's  soul  against  the  glittering 
barrier  of  wealth  which  fenced  in  the  blue-eyed 
goddess ! 

And,  that  night,  Gertrude  Melville  prayed  "Oh ! 
Jupiter  aid  us !"  before  her  pet  statue  of  the  God- 
dess Fortune,  and  breathed  a  prayer  that  the  scales 
would  fall  from  two  pairs  of  impassioned  eyes. 

"There  is  a  sort  of  fern  seed  glamour  in  this 
thing,"  the  pretty  matron  pouted.  "They  seem  to 
be  invisible  to  each  other !" 

That  very  night,  Rawdon  Clark,  Esq.,  in  a  con- 
fidential talk  with  his  visiting  manager,  Barker 
Bolton  of  Denver,  confided  to  his  returning  busi- 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA.      79 

ness  agent  his  high  scorn  of  the  ex-Captain,  Sid- 
ney Landon. 

'That  fellow  has  surely  some  hidden  shady 
spots  in  his  career.  I  know  he  was  kicked  out  of 
the  army  in  some  way !  Now,  he's  making  trouble 
for  friends  of  mine  here ! 

"All  I  know  is  that  he  left  the  army  suddenly ! 
Spend  all  the  money  that  you  want  to,  and  get  me 
a  report  over  here,  at  once.  I  want  to  down  him. 
There's  old  'Black  Bill'  Prindle,  the  Lieutenant 
Colonel  of  the  Grays. 

"He  is  in  command  while  old  man  Atwater  is  on 
leave.  I'll  send  you  a  letter  to  Mrs.  Dora  Prindle. 
She  is  the  secret  boss  of  the  Regiment,  and, — mind 
you, — nose  the  whole  thing  out !  You  can  make 
Mrs.  Prindle  a  handsome  present  in  my  name. 
They  are  at  Fort  Stanton  now !" 

All  unconscious  of  the  gossip  provoked  by  his 
reticent  avoidance  of  rosebud  society,  Sidney  Lan- 
don went  along  unruffled  on  his  lonely  way. 

In  his  own  mind,  he  had  resolutely  thrust  out 
the  image  of  the  lovely  woman  who  stood  so  far 
above  him  on  the  heights  of  Fortune. 

And  yet,  her  softly  shining  eyes  pursued  Him, 
as  he  wandered  out,  a  week  later,  to  think  calmly 


80  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

over  the  accumulating  proofs  of  Signore  Jacopo 
Maspero's  hidden  official  delinquencies.  "It  will 
take  Morgan  months  to  trace  all  out,"  he  mused, 
"and  the  Cavaliere  shall  have  a  square  deal." 

Landon  had  wandered  out  of  the  Porta  San  Se- 
bastiano,  leaving  his  carriage  to  await  his  return. 
The  cool  November  air  braced  his  spirits  as  he 
sped  along  the  old  Appian  way,  with  that  swing- 
ing stride  which  he  had  learned  on  the  boundless 
prairie  seas  of  the  west. 

His  heart  and  mind  were  full  of  but  one  beloved 
theme  as  he  paused  at  the  little  church  of  "Quo 
Vadis."  "Who  knows  where  fate,  not  faith, — will 
lead  me !"  he  murmured,  as  he  passed  the  Jewish 
catacombs,  the  Circus  of  Maxentius,  and,  then — 
resolutely  trudged  along  to  where  the  "stern 
round  tower  of  other  days"  told  of  the  sorrow  of 
Crassus  for  Metellus'  beloved  daughter ! 

Throwing  himself  down  in  the  shade  he  mur- 
mured, "Let  my  heart  entomb  her  as  a  memory ! 
Death  is  not  the  only  barrier !  The  battlements  of 
wealth,  to-day,  are  stronger  fences  than  these 
crumbling  crenellated  walls." 

A  slow  mental  torture  now  goaded  him  on  in 
his  daily  life. 


THE   FOREMOST  SCOUNDREL  PITCHED  OVER  HEADLONG 
ON  HIS  FACE.-/>afeS2. 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA.      81 

"I'll  wait"  he  mused,  after  a  half  hour's  intro- 
spection, "until  I  see  dear  old  Miles  Atwater — and 
Hatcher — then, — when  I  have  set  Signore  Jacopo 
Maspero  to  rights,  I  will — ask  for  a  change  of  offi- 
cial station, — anywhere, — anywhere !" 

Around  him  dreamed  the  lonely  wastes  of  the 
Campagna!  There  was  nothing  living  in  sight 
save  a  wretched  stray  buffalo !  The  ruined  arches 
of  the  old  aqueducts  glared  out  on  the  lonely 
plain, — the  silence-haunted  tombs  of  old  Romans 
glowed  in  the  stark  sunlight ! 

Suddenly  the  piercing  scream  of  a  woman's 
voice  was  borne  down  on  the  breeze. 

The  soldier  sprang  up,  alert  and  ready  as  when 
the  crawling  scout  had  laid  a  hand  on  his  mouth 
while  he  whispered,  "  Vienen  los  Apaches !" 

"It's  over  there,  in  the  hollow,"  he  mechan- 
ically muttered,  as  he  took  a  smart  double  time  to 
the  brow  of  a  little  hill  a  hundred  yards  away. 

And,  then,  the  fighting  blood  within  him  boiled, 
for,  sixty  yards  below,  a  group  of  raffish  looking 
fellows  were  pulling  two  helpless  women  out  of  a 
Victoria. 

On  the  road  beyond,  the  fleeing  coward  driver 

was  speeding  away,  yelling  with  Italian  fervor. 
e 


82  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

"I'm  in  luck!"  thought  Landon — as  he  drew  his 
army  revolvers,  which,  by  chance,  he  had  brought 
out  to  fire  away  the  useless  charges  in  some  se- 
cluded place,  where  five  hundred  francs  fine  would 
not  follow  such  a  daring  indiscretion. 

"I  must  get  nearer  to  make  sure,"  he  muttered, 
as  he  gazed  at  the  group  of  robbers.  "Some  poor 
English  tourist  women,  of  course." 

At  thirty  yards,  he  raised  the  heavy  weapon  and 
fired  point  blank  at  a  clump  of  three  of  the  brutes 
who  had  darted  toward  him,  brandishing  heavy 
clubs. 

The  foremost  scoundrel  pitched  over  headlong 
on  his  face,  and  then, — with  a  chorus  of  screams, 
the  other  ruffians  fled,  diving  into  the  deep  radial 
gulleys  leading  down  toward  the  catacombs. 

Landon  never  stopped  to  gaze  at  the  villain 
lying  there  before  him,  weltering  in  his  blood,  but 
he  dashed  up  to  the  helpless  woman  who  had  been 
dragged  from  the  carriage. 

The  revolver  dropped  from  his  hand  as  he  fell 
on  his  knees  by  the  side  of  the  senseless  victim  of 
the  daring  raid ! 

His  manhood  almost  forsook  him  as  he  mur- 


AT  THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA."      83 

mured  fondly — " Agnes!  Dead!  My  God!  Look 
up!    Speak  to  me!" 

For,  pillowed  on  his  breast  lay  the  fair  head  of 
the  goddess  of  the  Pincian,  as  he  roused  Mrs. 
Montgomery  with  vigorous  appeals  for  help ! 

Five  minutes  later,  the  coachman,  returning 
with  a  rescue  party  of  sheep  herders,  met  the  car- 
riage slowly  proceeding  homeward,  driven  by  the 
chance  rescuer. 

At  a  slow  walk,  the  vehicle  regained  the  Porta 
San  Sebastiani. 

"Here  is  my  own  carriage,"  whispered  Landon 
to  the  pale-faced  goddess.  " You  are  now  safe !  I 
will  follow  in  yours !  Say  nothing  of  this !  I  will 
report  to  the  authorities.  It  must  not  be  noised 
abroad.  Mrs.  Montgomery  is  now  herself  again." 

"How  can  I  repay  you  ?"  faltered  Agnes. 

"By  never  leaving  Rome  without  due  escort  and 
in  a  suitable  party,"  answered  Landon. 

"Besides,  I  am  paid  already!  Your  head  has 
rested  once  upon  my  breast !" 

And — they  parted  in  silence — while  all  the  way 
homeward  the  young  heiress  fondly  looked  at  her 
limp  and  helpless  hands !  She  felt  his  passionate 
kisses  tingling  there  yet ! 


84  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 


CHAPTER  IV. 
IN   THE   COLOSSEUM. 

With  the  quick  decision  of  a  soldier,  Landon 
had  already  framed  his  plan  to  stifle  any  needless 
gossip  as  to  the  morning's  adventure  long  before 
his  carriage  reached  the  American  Consulate  Gen- 
eral. 

He  was  delighted  at  the  womanly  prudence 
which  led  Agnes  Hawthorn  to  refuge  herself  with 
Gertrude  Melville,  that  sagacious  and  undaunted 
matron. 

As  he  supported  the  trembling  beauty  in  scaling 
the  two  giant  staircases  of  the  old  palace,  the 
young  man  whispered,  "Leave  all  to  me,  and, — 
say  nothing.  Confide  only  in  Mrs.  Melville. 

"I  will  have  my  coachman  artfully  detain 
yours,  until  Melville  can  take  your  cowardly 
driver  and  go  directly  to  the  Minister  of  Police. 

"There,  this  fellow  can  be  detained  as  a  witness 
against  the  wounded  brigand. 

"I  advise  you  to  spend  the  whole  afternoon  here 


IN- THE   COLOSSEUM.  85 

and  dine  later  with  the  Consul  General!  In  the 
evening,  we  will  all  escort  you  back  to  the  Hotel 
Costanzi,  and,  —  remember,  above  all  —  Mrs. 
Montgomery  must  be  silenced." 

Five  minutes  later  the  two  American  officials 
were  on  their  way  together  to  the  Ministry  of  Jus- 
tice. Landon  had  dismissed  his  own  driver,  a  re- 
liable fellow  provided  by  Forrest  Grimes. 

The  soldier  was  astonished  at  Arthur  Melville's 
sudden  energy  and  decision. 

"We  have  only  the  journals,  the  clubs  and  the 
society  gossip  to  fear,  my  dear  Landon,"  remarked 
the  Artist.  "Gertrude  will  send  out  and  bring 
down  the  Hollingsworths,  and  we  will  have  a 
musical  evening.  You  can  bring  up  Grimes  and 
Hatton  on  my  informal  bidding! 

"I  only  fear  one  thing, — have  the  two  coach- 
men been  chattering  with  each  other?" 

"Certainly  not,"  coolly  answered  Landon.  "Re- 
member! I  had  left  my  man  behind  at  the  San 
Sebastian  gate,  and,  when  the  shooting  occurred, 
— the  cowardly  wretch  who  drove  the  ladies  was 
out  of  sight !  The  two  men  have  not  had  a  chance 
to  exchange  a  single  word !" 

"Good !"  mused  the  Consul  General.    "Then  I 


86  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

will  have  this  driver  fellow  detained  as  a  witness 
against  the  wounded  thug. 

"In  this  way  we  can  control  the  tongue  of  local 
gossip. 

"It  must  be  done!"  gravely  continued  Melville, 
"for  the  watchful  geese  whose  squawking  saved 
ancient  Rome  are  marvels  of  silence  compared  to 
the  glib-tongued  slanderers  of  the  modern  burg. 
To  have  your  name  bandied  with  Agnes'  in  this, 
would  be  her  social  ruin.  We  must  stifle  the  whole 
thing!" 

Captain  Landon  bowed  his  head  in  a  silent  as- 
sent. Melville  marveled  at  the  look  of  sadness 
which  mantled  the  young  soldier's  features. 

When  they  drew  up  before  the  Ministry  of  Jus- 
tice, Landon  woke  from  a  reverie  and  seized  both 
his  companion's  hands  convulsively.  "You  must 
do  all  you  can,  Melville,  to  hide  this  occurrence." 

"You  are  right!  No  woman  can  be  protected 
against  the  fangs  of  her  merciless  sisterhood !  I 
could  tell  you  of  one  whose  heart  broke  under  the 
lash  of  unmerited  scorn — "  and  then  Landon  sud- 
denly checked  himself,  noting  Melville's  surprised 
glances. 

Fortunately,  the  carriage  halted,  and  the  obse- 


IN  THE  COLOSSEUM.  87 

quious  sentinels  presented  arms  as  the  American 
officials  were  received  by  the  orderly  officer. 

The  Consul  General  whispered  a  few  words  to 
the  young  Lieutenant  on  guard,  who  then  cour- 
teously led  the  way  into  the  Minister's  reception 
room. 

In  five  minutes  the  grave  Minister  was  pos- 
sessed of  the  main  facts  of  the  case  and  an  officer 
followed  by  an  orderly  was  clattering  away  to  the 
Porta  San  Sebastiano  for  an  official  report. 

Landon  admired  Melville's  aplomb  as  the  Min- 
ister, after  exhausting  the  Consul  General's  brief 
relation,  turned  to  himself  with  detailed  question- 
ing. 

Abandoning  the  graceful  Italian  in  which  he 
was  a  Tuscan  adept,  Melville  interjected  a  few 
French  words  of  expostulation. 

"My  Dear  Signer  Crispiani,"  he  began.  "You 
must  speak  French  to  my  friend,  Captain  Landon. 

"Now,  as  he  has  not  understood  our  colloquy,  I 
will  tell  him  that  you  desire  the  names  of  the  two 
imperiled  ladies,  and,  if  possible,  a  description." 

With  a  furtive  wink  to  Landon,  Melville  slyly 
continued :  "Of  course, — busied  as  I  was  at  the 
Consulate — I  paid  no  attention  to  the  two  ladies, 


88  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

who  took  a  passing  carriage  and  drove  hastily 
away." 

The  astute  Italian's  glittering  dark  eyes  rested 
inquiringly  upon  Landon's  handsome  face. 

Ringing  for  coffee  and  cigarettes,  the  Minister 
proceeded  to  jot  down  a  few  queries. 

In  his  own  mind,  he  was  really  studying  the 
handsome  soldier's  demeanor. 

"If  he  were  one  of  our  Roman  cavaliers,"  mused 
Crispiani,  "it  were  easy  to  unravel  the  intrigue.  A 
hot-hearted  beauty, — a  complacent  duenna, — a 
little  meeting  outside  the  walls, — a  jealous  rival's 
rage. 

"Bah!  These  English  and  Americans  only 
have  ice  water  in  their  veins  after  all !" 

In  his  silkiest  tones,  Crispiani  began :  "Signior 
Landono,  you,  alone,  can  aid  me.  I  have  already 
ordered  the  driver  to  be  kept  apart  from  all  other 
prisoners,  in  close  detention,  as  an  honorable  wit- 
ness for  the  state. 

"But  you  know  not  the  subtlety  of  our  Italian 
peasants.  I  presume  if  these  ladies  picked  up  a 
'voiture  d'occasion,'  this  fellow  may  be  one  of 
those  loafers  who  drive  people  out  of  the  city,  and, 
by  a  passing  sign  or  a  messenger  sent  on  ahead, 


IN  THE  COLOSSEUM.  89 

assemble  a  few  ruffians  who  pillage  unprotected 
tourists. 

''Your  imprudent  English  and  American  ladies 
are  traveling  treasuries!  Corpo  de  Bacco!  Dia- 
monds,— money, — jewels, — all  these  riches  adorn 
them,  even  by  day !  We  Italians  are  very  poor, — 
and  hence" — he  sighed,  "very  prudent." 

Sidney  Landon  had  caught  the  drift  of  his  offi- 
cial friend's  warning,  and  he  tarried  long  over  his 
coffee  and  cigarette,  before  he  answered.  "Mon- 
sieur le  Ministre  will  observe,"  he  calmly  began, 
"that  I  am  a  recent  arrival, — not  a  man  of  society 
—and,  as  a  soldier  of  the  far  west, — unacquainted 
with  even  the  faces  of  the  leading  American  resi- 
dents. 

"I  paid  no  special  attention  to  the  ladies.  There 
was  no  one  in  sight  when  the  attack  occurred,  save 
the  cowardly  coachman,  who  had  cleared  the  knoll 
before  I  fired  at  the  brutes. 

"I  only  waited  an  instant  at  the  San  Sebastian 
gate,  to  put  the  ladies  into  my  carriage,  and, — fol- 
lowing, in  the  other,  at  a  safe  distance,  I  was  only 
busied  with  detaining  this  fellow,  whom  I  thought 
would  be  needed  as  a  witness. 

"The  two  ladies  were  both  too  badly  frightened 


90  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

to  talk,  and, — they  gave  me  no  names.  I  drove  the 
deserted  carriage  myself  rapidly  on  till  we  met  the 
gend'armes  and  villagers  going  back  with  the 
strange  driver. 

"The  ladies  looked  to  me  to  be  English  tourists 
of  the  middle  classes. 

"You  may  hear  of  this  later  through  the  En- 
glish Embassy.  The  English  always  make  a  great 
racket  if  their  travelers  are  interfered  .with." 

Arthur  Melville  sank  back  with  a  sigh  of  relief 
as  he  noted  the  effect  of  Landon's  judicious  and 
gentlemanly  lying. 

"Two  to  one  on  Landon,"  he  mused,  as  he  gazed 
on  the  soldier's  impassive  face. 

Signior  Crispiani  touched  a  bell  and  whispered 
a  few  words  to  an  aid,  who  vanished  like  a  jack  in 
the  box. 

"Of  course,"  suavely  said  the  Minister,  "the 
Consul  General's  official  guarantee  of  your  rank 
and  station  makes  your  evidence  all  that  is  neces- 
sary. 

"I  will  wait  and  hear  what  this  fellow  has  to  say 
— his  first  tissue  of  lies,  and  then  merely  ask  you  to 
dictate  a  brief  statement  to  my  secretary.  You 
will  be  troubled  no  farther  than  to  identify  the  fel- 


IN   THE   COLOSSEUM.  91 

low  whom  you  wounded,  and  to  swear  that  the 
shooting  was  done  in  self  defense." 

Landon  bowed  politely  and  studied  the  pictures 
of  the  royal  family  until  Signior  Crispiani's  aid 
returned. 

There  was  much  exchange  of  the  Italian  dialect 
carried  on  by  both  hands  and  all  the  ringers,  with 
added  manipulations  of  the  eyes,  until,  finally,  the 
aid  vanished. 

Signior  Crispiani  resumed  his  fluent  French, 
with  an  air  of  profound  wisdom.  "We  have  the 
fellow's  name,  description,  cab  number  and  so 
forth — one  of  the  average  handy  rascals  of  the 
town.  He,  of  course,  howls  'non  capisco.' 

"His  story  is  that  the  ladies  hired  him  near  the 
Teatro  Apollo  for  a  drive.  Trying  to  make  a 
good  fare, — he  took  them  out  to  the  nearest  of  our 
outside  'lions,'  seeking  only  a  round  twenty  lire  for 
his  half  day's  work. 

"All  he  will  say  is  that  one  was  oldj — the  other 
not  so  old!  He  classes  them  as  'Inglesi.' 

"Of  course,  he  stoutly  denies  all  complicity  in 
the  attack, — and, — also,  declares  that  he  did  not 
see  the  shooting !  He  only  jumped  off  his  box  and 


92  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

cleared  out  when  the  band  of  loafers  swarmed  out 
of  the  bushes." 

"What  will  you  do  with  him?"  carelessly  de- 
manded Melville. 

"He  will  be  kept  and  well  treated  until  the  other 
fellow  dies  or  is  tried,"  answered  Crispiani. 

"I  believe  him  innocent.  I  think  he  tells  the 
truth,"  said  Landon.  "Allow  me," — he  remarked 
as  he  handed  the  Minister  a  fifty-lire  note.  "Let 
the  poor  devil  have  this  for  tobacco  money !  After 
all,  he  brought  aid  back  as  soon  as  he  could." 

"You  are  very  generous,  Capitano,"  bowed  the 
Minister. 

"Ah !  Here  is  our  report  from  the  Captain  of 
Gendarmerie  at  the  station  near  San  Sebastiano." 
.  The  crafty  Italian  ran  his  eye  over  the  precis 
handed  to  him.  Dismissing  the  aid  with  a  nod, 
Crispiani  read  with  a  professional  triumph  : 

"Prisoner  badly  wounded  in  shoulder, — now  in 
prison  hospital.  Recognized  as  Giuseppe  Corti, — 
a  professional  criminal  wanted  on  other  charges. 
Three  of  his  party,  lazzaroni,  also  in  custody." 

"Good,"  concluded  the  Minister.  "Corti  will 
get  five  years  in  the  government  sulphur  mines, — 
the  others  for — say  three  years,  and,  on  the  whole 


IN   THE   COLOSSEUM.  93 

report, — we  shall  simply  charge  them  with  an  at- 
tack as  common  footpads  upon  you.  So  we  need 
not  look  further  for  the  vanished  ladies,  although, 
their  evidence  would,  of  course,  be  valuable." 

For  half  an  hour  the  scratching  of  the  Secre- 
tary's pen  was  the  only  sound  which  punctuated 
the  Minister's  questions  and  the  carefully  guarded 
general  replies  of  the  cautious  Captain. 

Finally,  Crispiani  presented  the  transcript  to 
Captain  Landon  for  his  signature. 

"You  will  observe,  Your  Excellency,  that  I  can 
not,  especially  after  a  few  days,  identify  any  of 
the  wounded  man's  companions,"  gravely  said  the 
young  American. 

"All  easy  enough,  my  dear  friend,"  smilingly 
said  the  functionary.  "I  shall  send  you  home  in 
my  carriage.  If  you  would  honor  me  now  with 
your  signature  you  can  avoid  all  future  appearance 
in  court,  by  permitting  me  to  send  my  carriage  and 
a  staff  officer  to  the  Consulate  General  to-morrow 
at  such  hour  as  you  choose. 

"If  you  will  be  good  enough  to  drive  down  to 
the  Hospital  and  identify  the  wounded  man,  then 
your  Consulate  General  seal  on  this  paper  will 
serve  as  final  evidence. 


94  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

"I  shall  send  for  the  driver,  who  will  be  de- 
tained here,  later  in  the  day,  and  he,  for  mere 
policy,  will  swear  to  the  identity  of  the  whole 
gang." 

An  hour  later,  the  friends  had  regained  the  fam- 
ily home  in  the  Palazzo  Vecchio.  It  was  a  royal 
progress  in  the  official  carriage  of  the  Minister 
with  its  liveried  outriders. 

Melville  and  Landon,  closeted  in  the  studio,  dis- 
cussed a  bottle  of  Lachrymse  Christi, — while  they 
concerted  plans  for  the  evening. 

Melville's  face  was  grave  as  he  returned  from  a 
brief  colloquy  with  his  energetic  wife.  "All  looks 
well,  Landon,"  he  cheerfully  said.  "Do  you  now 
go  and  make  sure  of  Grimes  and  Hatton  for  the 
evening. 

"I  find  that  Mrs.  Melville  has  sent  Mrs.  Mont- 
gomery home  in  our  carriage  and  I  think  there  can 
be  no  gossiping." 

For  all  that,  when  the  Captain  had  departed, 
Melville  called  his  wife  aside. 

"Be  careful,  Gertrude,"  he  affectionately  sug- 
gested. "You  know  what  Italian  maids  are.  Do 
not  let  our  women  overhear  you  talking  with 
Agnes  over  this  romantic  episode.  All  these  Ital- 


IN  THE   COLOSSEUM.  95 

ian  girls  have  lovers, — and  the  lover  is  the  keeper 
of  the  heart  secrets  of  the  inamorata." 

The  Consul  General  fled  away  to  his  brush  and 
a  peculiarly  adaptable  painting  light,  leaving 
Madame  Gertrude  in  silent  blushes,  for,  alas, — the 
two  snapping  black-eyed  maids  were  already  mag- 
nifying in  their  simple  hearts  the  artless  disclos- 
ures of  the  hostess  and  her  beautiful  guest.  The 
warning  came  too  late ! 

There  was  a  peculiarly  joyful  dinner  in  the  Mel- 
ville household  on  this  eventful  evening. 

With  bashful  maiden  wit,  Miss  Agnes  Haw- 
thorn had  contrived  to  be  taken  in  by  the  genial 
Frank  Hatton,  and  the  two  Philadelphians  gaily 
chatted  of  the  sleepy  metropolis  by  the  beloved 
Schuylkill. 

This  gentle  artifice  in  no  wise  deceived  that  ex- 
perienced matron,  Gertrude  Melville,  for,  the  pale 
beauty's  eye  would  wander,  in  spite  of  her  affected 
coldness,  to  rest,  with  a  cerulean  flash,  upon  Lan- 
don,  happily  sheltered  under  Mrs.  Elaine  Hol- 
lingsworth's  friendly  wing. 

But  "it  was  merry  in  hall"  as  Melville  grace- 
fully wrangled  about  art  with  Forrest  Grimes, — 


96  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

finding,  to  his  secret  glee,  so  many  points  of  con- 
venient difference. 

"The  very  charm  of  Art  lies  in  its  unvarying 
vagueness,"  was  the  crowning  dictum  of  the 
saturnine  Grimes. 

And  Charley  Hollingsworth,  outrageously  flirt- 
ing with  his  hostess,  was  only  able  to  escape  when 
the  ladies  left  the  gentlemen  to  their  wine. 

Drawing  Landon  into  a  corner,  he  then  handed 
the  Captain  an  evening  journal. 

There,  in  all  the  exuberant  romance  of  the 
"lingua  Toscana,"  was  a  floridly  fabulous  account 
of  the  desperate  battle  waged  with  robbers  on  the 
Via  Appia  by  the  gallant  Capitano  Landon  of  the 
Consulate  General  degli  Stati  Uniti. 

"You  are  famous  forever,  now,  my  boy,"  gaily 
cried  the  volatile  Fred.  But  Landon,  with  a  grave 
face,  drew  Melville  aside,  and  the  two  men  at  once 
began  to  build  additional  battlements  around  the 
truth. 

Hastily  excusing  himself,  Melville  sought  his 
wife's  boudoir  and,  after  a  few  hasty  words  of 
conference,  they  decided  to  escape  further  social 
complication  by  sporting  the  oak. 

It  was  with  an  affected  gaiety  that  the  hostess 


IN   THE   COLOSSEUM.  97 

summoned  her  guests  to  a  moonlight  excursion  to 
the  weirdly  haunted  interior  of  the  Flavian  Am- 
phitheatre. "We  will  have  our  music  later  when 
we  come  home  for  supper,"  cried  the  dainty  social 
tyrant. 

And  so  the  whole  party  sallied  forth,  under  the 
experienced  guidance  of  that  Admirable  Crichton, 
Grimes,  after  the  men  had  agnostically  listened  to 
Landon's  disclaimer  of  any  heroism. 

''The  whole  thing  is  a  sheer  exaggeration," 
calmly  answered  the  Captain,  as  his  eyes  met  Mel- 
ville's in  a  renewed  pledge  of  secrecy. 

"But  we  demand  to  know  who  was  the  lady  of 
incomparable  loveliness  for  whom  you  fought?" 
cried  Fred  Hollingsworth,  and  then,  the  jester 
marveled  to  see  the  ashen  whiteness  of  Agnes 
Hawthorn's  face. 

"Let  us  talk  of  something  else  than  battle  and 
murder,"  she  cried,  as  she  seized  upon  Hollings- 
worth for  her  cicerone  of  the  evening.  "You,  sir 
— an  old  Roman, — must  now  personally  present 
me  to  'the  glory  that  was  Rome !' ' 

The  deep-toned  bells  were  beating  midnight  as 
the  merry  party  in  little  duets  wandered  through 


98  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

the  vast  moonlit  depths  of  Earth's  greatest  human- 
made  crater. 

It  had  been  by  a  prudent  coup  de  main  of  Ger- 
trude Melville  that  Agnes  Hawthorn  laid  her 
trembling  hand  at  last  on  Sidney  Landon's  arm. 
The  vast  walFs  overhung  the  young  couple  as,  with 
a  gentle  craft,  the  grateful  girl  drew  Landon  away 
from  the  happy  roysterers. 

There  were  scores  of  parties  dispersed  around 
the  interior,  in  moonlight  and  in  shade,  and  the 
guttural  German,  the  nasal  Yankee  intonation, 
mingled  with  the  nervous  snap  of  the  Frenchman 
and  the  honeyed  babble  of  the  Italian. 

The  brooding  silence  had  wrapped  them,  at  last, 
as  they  threaded  a  gallery  once  devoted  to  passive 
martyrs  and  infuriated  beasts,  to  buckler  clashing 
gladiators  or  the  merciless  Roman  soldiery. 

"I  wish  you  to  believe  in  my  gratitude,  Cap- 
tain," began  the  sweet-faced  goddess,  now  melting 
at  heart.  "I  do  not  know  why  you  seem  to  have 
avoided  us,  but — " 

"I  tell  you  he  will  marry  the  girl,"  rang  out  a 
harsh  voice  near  them, — and,  then — a  rougher  one 
answered,  with  a  doubtful  snort: 

"Why  so?" 


IN   THE   COLOSSEUM.  99 

"Because  Rawdon  Clark  owns  the  millions  of 
the  Elkhorn  Mine!" 

"Why,  this  Hawthorn  girl  is  rich  as  a  Jew !" 

Landon  felt  the  arm  leaning  upon  his  own 
tighten  sharply  as  the  merciless  voices  of  the  night 
proceeded. 

"Rawdon  Clark  never  missed  a  trick  in  his  life. 

"There  is  Philadelphia  society, — and, — the 
Senate  to  conquer.  With  this  girl's  family  con- 
nection, he  can  do  both!" — but  Sidney  Landon 
only  heard  the  agonized  whisper,  "Take  me  back 
to  them — anywhere, — out  of  here!" 

It  was  in  silence  that  Landon  drew  the  cloak 
closer  around  the  girl's  shivering  form  and  hur- 
ried her  away  to  where  Mrs.  Melville  was  now 
mustering  the  party  for  a  return. 

A  chill  icier  than  the  breath  of  the  night  wind 
froze  the  young  man's  heart  as  he  bowed,  and 
sought  a  refuge  in  the  second  carriage. 

He  could  only  see  the  fair  graceful  head  resting 
upon  Mrs.  Melville's  shoulder  as  the  first  carriage 
moved  away. 

"It's  a  brutal  outrage,"  the  proud  young  soldier 
mused  in  the  bitterness  of  his  heart.  "The  doom 
of  the  heiress!  To  be  hunted  down  by  callous- 


100  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

handed  millionaires  or  to  be  the  sport  of  the  ad- 
venturer." 

"My  God,  Landon,"  cried  Forrest  Grimes,  at 
his  side,  "you  have  not  come  out  clad  only  in  a 
dress  suit  ?  Where's  your  cloak  ?  This  night  air 
is  deadly  to  strangers!  Here!  I'm  an  older 
Roman  than  you !" 

But  the  bronzed  Captain  resolutely  declined  the 
offer,  as  he  pitilessly  exclaimed,  "Never  mind  me, 
old  boy!  There  is  no  one  left  to  mourn  for 
Logan!" 

And,  yet — a  half  hour  later, — when  the  car- 
riages drew  up  before  the  Palazzo  Vecchio,  Cap- 
tain Landon — soldierly  attentive — was  the  first 
to  aid  Miss  Agnes  Hawthorn  from  the  carriage. 

The  detachment  of  Americans  halted,  in  aston- 
ishment, in  the  arched  entrance  of  the  old  mansion, 
where  Landon,  in  a  muffled  voice, — made  his 
adieux. 

Melville  turned  in  astonishment.  "By  no 
means!  You  are  to  sup  with  us,  and, — we  will 
have  the  Star  Spangled  Banner  and  all  that !  You 
have  not  heard  Miss  Hawthorn  sing !" 

Standing  with  reluctant  feet  on  the  gleaming 
marble  stairway,  the  heiress  turned  slowly,  as 


IN   THE   COLOSSEUM.  101 

Landon  reiterated  his  apologies!  The  golden- 
haired  young  goddess  appreciated  the  delicacy 
which  would  shield  her  from  his  knowledge  of  the 
brutal  meshes  of  the  fowler's  nets. 

She  stood  there,  with  one  graceful  arm  ex- 
tended, in  a  gesture  half  a  command,  half  a  sup- 
plication. 

Suddenly  there  was  a  shriek  from  Gertrude 
Melville  as  Agnes  Hawthorn  fell  heavily  upon  the 
slippery  marble! 

By  the  glimmering  light  of  the  crescent,  Landon 
stooped  and,  with  the  skill  of  a  trained  athlete, 
raised  the  prostrate  form ! 

Up  the  stairway  he  strode,  never  halting,  as 
Melville  dashed  on  ahead,  until,  passing  through 
the  frightened  domestics,  he  had  placed  the  moan- 
ing sufferer  upon  the  bed  in  Gertrude  Melville's 
chamber. 

"Doctor  Corvini!"  cried  Melville  as  he  gave 
place  to  his  wife,  followed  by  the  artist's  wife. 

"Fred  is  away,  in  the  carriage,  on  the  gallop  to 
bring  him,"  said  Elaine  Hollingsworth,  as  she 
knelt,  white-faced,  by  the  sufferer. 

In  the  drawing  room  the  men  lingered  in  ex- 


102  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

pectant  sadness,  awaiting  the  arrival  of  the  great 
surgeon,  Doctor  Cesare  Corvini. 

It  was  Landon's  presence,  of  mind  that  brought 
the  nearest  practitioner  in  spectacles  and  dressing 
gown,  from  the  other  side  of  the  square. 

Arthur  Melville  returned  from  the  improvised 
sick  room  to  announce  the  "first  aid"  efforts  of  the 
minor  practitioner  and  the  probable  gravity  of  the 
case. 

"Broken,  I  fear,"  the  Consul  General  murmured 
in  answer  to  the  mute  inquiries  of  the  haggard 
eyes  fixed  upon  his  anxious  face.  "She  has  been 
given  an  opiate !" 

Two  hours  later  the  coterie  separated,  after 
knowing  Doctor  Corvini's  work  done. 

"A  bad  compound  fracture  of  the  right  ankle, 
gentlemen,"  said  the  old  Professor,  as  he  dis- 
missed the  visitors. 

"Miss  Hawthorn  will  see  little  of  our  Roman 
season,  until  carnival  time.  As  for  moving  her, — 
it  is  simply  impossible.  Thank  Heaven,  she  is  in  a 
household  offering  every  facility.  The  ankle  will 
go  into  a  plaster  cast  to-morrow  morning." 

Sadly  enough,  Grimes,  Hatton  and  the  dejected 


IN  THE  COLOSSEUM.  103 

Landon  betook  themselves  through  the  gloomy 
streets  to  the  Eveless  Paradise. 

There,  even  at  three  o'clock,  the  reception  room 
blazed  with  light.  All  the  members  of  the  in- 
formal club  were  awaiting  the  return  of  the  hero 
of  the  journalistic  sensation  of  the  evening. 

"You  are  the  most  talked-of  man  in  Rome  to- 
night, Landon,"  gaily  cried  Wilson  Waddingham, 
the  jolly  English  attache.  "The  great  thing  is, 
—'dove  la  Donna?'" 

But,  sadly  enough,  the  three  friends  repulsed 
all  the  questioners,  wearily  hearing  that  the  clubs 
and  salons  were  ringing  with  the  wildest  rumors. 

"Damn  the  Italian  newspapers!"  growled  Cap- 
tain Landon,  as  he  stalked  away  shivering  to  his 
fireless  room. 

"I  want  you  fellows  all  to  understand  that  my 
lips  are  silent  on  the  whole  occurrence !" 

"You  had  better  keep  out  of  the  salons  and 
clubs,  then,"  kindly  answered  the  Briton,  "for, — 
Robert  Brandon  and  the  all-compelling  Mrs.  Myra 
have  already  taken  the  affair  in  tow.  It's  the 
sensation  of  the  hour!" 

The  three  friends  had  already  agreed  to  a  strict 


104  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

silence  upon  the  embarrassing  accident  of  the 
beautiful  heiress. 

"Clouds  everywhere,"  murmured  Landon. 
"My  life  lies  darkly  before  me,"  he  sighed,  as  he 
threw  himself  half  dressed  upon  his  bed,  and  fell 
asleep,  with  unaccustomed  rigors  of  crawling 
chills  racking  his  frame. 

Down  below  on  the  "causerie,"  Forrest  Grimes 
was  grumbling  over  a  hot  grog  at  Landon's  reck- 
less exposure  of  his  health.  "You  fellows  know 
what  it  is  for  a  man  to  linger  a  couple  of  hours  in 
that  old  death  trap, — the  Colosseum, — a  man  only 
clad  in  a  light  dress  suit. 

"I  fear  Landon  may  hear  from  our  insidious 
enemy — the  dismal  Roman  fever.  I  pray  to  God 
not— but  I  fear  it !" 

Up  in  the  Palazzo  Vecchio  two  devoted  women 
watched  over  the  moaning  sufferer,  while  their 
husbands  gloomily  exchanged  a  good-night. 

Charley  Hollingsworth  charged  himself  with  an 
early  morning  visit  to  Mrs.  Montgomery,  and 
agreed  to  convey  Miss  Hawthorn's  companion 
down  for  general  instructions. 

"I'll  have  Elaine  watch  over  the  dear  old  lady 
at  the  Hotel  Costanzi,"  cheerily  cried  the  good  fel- 


RAWDON  CLARK  TAKES  A  HAND.        105 

low,  "and  see  that  the  simple  old  soul  is  neither 
robbed  nor  carried  off  by  some  scandal  monger." 

It  was  a  gloomy  ending  of  the  day  which  had 
promised  so  fairly  to  the  bright-hearted  American 
coterie. 


CHAPTER  V. 

MR.  RAWDON  CLARK  TAXES  A  HAND  IN  THE  GAME 
OF    HEARTS. 

Vice  Consul  General  Landon  awoke  to  a  day  of 
unusual  responsibilities  with  an  aching  head,  and 
strange  languorous  shivers  creeping  over  his  still 
tired-out  body. 

When  he  joined  the  jolly  coterie  in  the  breakfast 
room  it  was  already  ten  o'clock  and  yet  the  mem- 
bers of  the  informal  club  were  lingering  over  the 
newspapers. 

With  a  resolute  denial,  the  soldier  waved  away 
the  sheaf  of  papers  presented  to  him. 

He  silently  drank  his  morning  coffee,  and  then 
drew  Forrest  Grimes  and  Frank  Hatton  out  of  the 
quizzing  circle. 

"I  shall  go  up  to  the  Consulate,"  he  said  to  his 


106  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

friends  as  they  took  their  constitutional  down  the 
Corso.  "I  will  try  and  relieve  Melville  as  much 
as  I  can.  This  affair  of  last  night  will  upset  his 
household  for  some  time. 

"Favor  me  with  quieting  all  this  row  about  the 
bandit  episode  and  all  that.  I  must  seal  my  lips, 
and  you  know  I  hate  notoriety  of  all  kinds." 

"Landon,  my  dear  boy,"  affectionately  said  the 
veteran  Grimes.  "I  wish  you  to  go  and  see  Doctor 
Corvini.  See  him  to-day!  Have  him  tone  you 
up  a  little. 

"For,  never  again  must  you  tempt  life  and  death 
as  you  did  last  evening  in  braving  the  poisonous 
night  air  of  'Rome.'  " 

"All  right,"  wearily  answered  the  Captain,  as 
he  hastened  away  abruptly,  for  Mr.  Robert  Bran- 
don, bustling  and  officious,  was  booming  down 
upon  them,  evidently  gossip  mad. 

The  offices  of  the  Consul  General  were  filled 
with  an  augmented  crowd  as  Landon  entered,  find- 
ing the  young  secretary,  Morgan,  the  center  of  a 
knot  of  eager  questioners. 

Gravely  replying  to  Signore  Maspero's  over- 
done bow  of  official  obsequiousness,  Landon  si- 
lently addressed  himself  to  his  letters. 


RAWDON  CLARK  TAKES  A  HAND.        107 

He  tossed  them  in  his  desk  after  a  hasty  glance. 
"So  dear  old  Rufus  Hatcher  will  be  here  in  three 
days,"  he  mused  as  he  sought  the  private  apart- 
ments of  the  Consul  General. 

"I  wish  I  could  escape  the  dear  old  General," 
uneasily  ruminated  Landon.  "For  he  will  put  the 
Army  matter  at  me  roughly,  in  his  kind  old 
stormy  way !" 

The  brutal  comments  of  the  unknown  babblers 
in  the  Colosseum  recalled  Rawdon  Clark's  per- 
sistent chase  of  the  fair  young  orphan. 

"I  will  face  Hatcher — and, — then, — get  out  of 
here,"  grimly  decided  the  young  man.  "I  can  not 
bear  to  see  the  end  of  this  cold-hearted  marking 
clown  of  that  sweet  orphaned  girl." 

Captain  Landon's  utmost  courtesy  was  soon 
tested  in  resisting  the  flustering  queries  of  Mrs. 
Myra  Brandon,  bustling  down  the  long  corridor 
and  coming  into  the  Consular  office  in  a  towering 
rage. 

"Perhaps  you  can  tell  me,  Captain  Landon,  why 
I  am  denied  access  to  my  young  relative,  Miss 
Hawthorn.  I  hear  rumors  of  a  frightful  accident 
to  her.  I  have  just  returned  from  the  Costanzi. 


108  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Agnes'  apartments  are  closed.     I  am  denied  a 
meeting  with  her." 

With  grave  politeness,  Captain  Landon  re- 
minded the  social  magnifico  that  he  was  a  mere 
stranger  to  the  Consul  General's  household. 

"I  am  merely  an  official,  Madame, — a  casual 
visitor  to  Rome.  I  shall  probably  depart  soon,  and 
my  acquaintance  with  the  Melville  household  is 
that  of  a  mere  recent  hospitality. 

"Surely  Consul  General  and  Mrs.  Melville  are 
the  leaders  of  our  colony,  and  any  one  is  safe  in 
their  hands !  Pray,  excuse  me.  I  have  my  official 
reports  to  make !" 

With  a  deep  bow,  he  passed  on  into  the  studio 
to  receive  Melville's  morning  report  of  the  suf- 
ferer's condition  and  to  concert  means  for  wrap- 
ping the  whole  occurrences  in  a  graver  reticence. 

"It  will  be  weeks,  my  dear  Landon,"  sighed 
Melville,  "before  dear  Agnes  can  leave  us.  And, 
so,  I  depend  in  all  things  upon  you. 

"I  shall  station  two  servants  here  to  keep  away 
the  noisy  jackdaws. 

"By  the  way,  you  are  looking  wretchedly.  I 
shall  send  Corvini  in  to  see  you." 

With  the  knowledge  that  the  sufferer  was  in  the 


RAWDON  CLARK  TAKES  A  HAND.        109 

torturing  agonies  of  the  plaster  cast  operation, 
Landon  sought  the  nearest  florists  and  sent  a 
basket  of  the  beautiful  Roman  blossoms  to  bear  his 
mute  greetings. 

And  then  the  young  man  returned  to  his  duties 
at  the  crowded  reception  room  of  the  Consulate 
General. 

The  bells  were  clanging  for  noon  when,  from 
his  open  window,  Landon  saw  Rawdon  Clark's 
splendid  equipage  dashing  up.  The  burly  Bran- 
don was  seated  in  the  Victoria  with  the  hard-fea- 
tured millionaire. 

A  premonition  of  trouble  flashed  over  Landon's 
mind  as,  with  a  face  darkened  by  a  quiet  rage, 
Clark  strode  into  the  room. 

"I  demand  to  see  Consul  General  Melville,"  he 
curtly  said,  without  even  removing  his  hat. 

Captain  Landon  calmly  replied,  "I  have  sole 
charge  of  all  official  matters,  sir." 

"I  wish  to  send  my  card  in  to  his  personal  resi- 
dence," hotly  followed  up  the  visitor. 

'T  understand  that  there  is  illness  in  the  fam- 
ily," remarked  Landon,  "and  the  servants  have  or- 
ders to  receive  all  cards  and  to  beg  that  Mr.  Mel- 
ville be  excused." 


110  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

"I  demand  to  know  why  the  flowers  I  sent  to 
Miss  Hawthorn  have  been  returned,"  broke  out 
Clark. 

"And  I  wish  to  know  why  my  wife  was  refused 
access  to  her  relative,"  pompously  threatened 
Brandon. 

"Gentlemen,"  said  Captain  Landon,  "you  must 
seek  such  answers  from  Doctor  Corvini,  or  ad- 
dress a  note  to  Mr.  Melville.  I  am  in  no  way  con- 
cerned with  the  social  affairs  of  Mr.  Melville  or  his 
guest." 

"I  insist,"  thundered  Clark. 

"Then,  sir,"  said  Landon,  with  dignity,  "I  can 
only  say,  in  the  absence  of  my  superior,  that  your 
conduct  is  unwarranted,  and  that,  as  his  official 
representative,  I  shall  not  discuss  these  matters. 
You  will  find  that  he  will  resent  this  intrusion ;  if 
he  does  not,  then,  /  will!" 

Cowed  and  snarling — the  two  men  dashed  out 
of  the  door,  with  added  fuel  to  the  flames  of  their 
ire. 

It  was  three  o'clock  when  Landon's  strange 
weariness  forced  him  to  turn  the  office  over  to  Mr. 
Morgan.  "If  I  were  not  proof  against  small  and 


RAWDON  CLARK  TAKES  A  HAND.        Ill 

large  ailments,"  he  muttered,  "I  should  fear  that 
Grimes'  prophecy  was  a  correct  one." 

He  reached  the  Eveless  Paradise  only  to  find 
Frank  Hatton  awaiting  him  there,  with  the  light 
of  battle  in  his  eyes. 

"I  have  just  left  the  American  Club,  Sidney," 
began  the  honest  scribe,  "and  the  whole  crowd  of 
dawdlers  are  simply  gone  mad  over  the  affair  at 
the  Cecilia  Metella  tomb,  and  this  mysterious  acci- 
dent to  Miss  Hawthorn. 

"Grimes  sharply  called  two  or  three  of  them 
down.  I'm  sorry  to  say  that  they  are  coupling 
your  name  very  freely  with  Miss  Hawthorn's." 

Captain  Landon  clenched  his  shapely  fist. 

"Cowards!"  he  muttered.  "It's  that  cackling 
pair,  the  Brandons." 

"Worse  than  that!"  gravely  answered  Hatton. 
"That  cold-hearted  brute,  Clark,  has  been  driving 
all  over  town  from  the  Hotel  Costanzi — to  club 
and  hotel,  swearing  that  he  will  get  at  the  bottom 
of  the  affair.  I  see  trouble  ahead  for  both  of  us !" 

"Why  for  you?"  said  Landon,  now  pale  with 
anger. 

"Because  the  scoundrel  took  me  into  the  card 
room  and  demanded  that  I  go  out  to  the  Porta  San 


112  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

Sebastiano,  and,  on  carte  blanche  orders,  write  up 
the  whole  affair  of  the  banditti,  in  detail. 

"He  has  ordered  me  to  find  out  the  two  ladies, 
and  to  interview  them,  as  well  as  to  feature  the 
whole  affair  for  the  'Mail.' 

"Further,  and  the  crowning  infamy  of  all,  he  in- 
sists upon  a  two-column  article  upon  the  distress- 
ing accident  to  Miss  Hawthorn — " 

"And,  you  said  ?" — broke  out  Landon,  his  eyes 
blazing  with  a  suddenly  kindled  wrath. 

"I  flatly  refused,"  blurted  out  the  manly  young 
son  of  Rutgers,  "when  he  threatened  me  with  an 
instant  discharge. 

"I  braved  him  with  my  contract,  which  holds 
the  journal  for  a  year,  and  then  he  stormed  away, 
swearing  he  would  have  it  done  by  others.  I  can 
not  prevent  the  insertion  of  this  stuff !" 

"/  can, — and,  so  help  me  God,  /  will!"  cried 
Landon,  as  he  gratefully  grasped  the  brave  young 
fellow's  hand. 

"I'll  see  Melville,  my  boy !  He  is  rich  and  pow- 
erful !  You  shall  be  protected." 

Sick  at  heart,  Captain  Landon  sought  his  room 
and  lay  down  in  a  deep  exhaustion. 

That  night,  while  the  fever  crept  through  the 


RAWDON  CLARK  TAKES  A  HAND.        113 

young  soldier's  weakened  frame,  in  a  private  room 
at  the  Hotel  Quirinale,  Rawdon  Clark  plied  Sig- 
nore  Jacopo  Maspero  with  the  choicest  wines. 

"Find  out  the  whole  mystery  for  me,"  the  mil- 
lionaire whispered.  "I'll  give  you  a  year's  salary 
if  you  let  me  know  what  goes  on  in  that  sick  room 
daily.  A  few  hundred  lire  notes  will  make  the 
servants  in  the  Melville  household  your  slaves  for 
life." 

As  Clark  drove  home  after  binding  his  infa- 
mous bargain,  he  chuckled  over  his  own  acuteness. 

"This  Italian  fellow  hates  Landon,  who  lords  it 
over  him,  and  he  will  be  glad  for  his  revenge! 
I  will  have  the  whole  circle  under  my  secret  search- 
lights soon! 

"And  now  for  the  great  stroke!  Old  General 
Hatcher  comes  soon.  He  is  brave  and  frank,  and 
yet  as  vain  as  an  old  turkey  cock!  I'll  just  give 
him  a  bang-up  dinner  and  make  that  fool  Hatton 
write  it  up, — in  style !  A  few  bottles  of  wine  will 
worm  out  the  story  of  how  this  fellow  Landon 
left  the  army, — how  and  why! 

"Then,  by  Heaven,  I'll  use  the  paper  against 
him !  I'll  ventilate  the  whole  story  and  chase  him 
out  of  the  Consular  service. 

8 


114  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

"When  he  is  out  of  the  way,  the  Brandons  must 
get  hold  of  Agnes  Hawthorn. 

"After  that,  the  running  will  be  easy !  Yes !  I 
will  take  a  hand  in  this  little  game  of  'Hearts,' — 
a  winning  one!" 

Signore  Maspero,  waiting  gloatingly  for  the 
dawn,  recalled  how  skillfully  he  had  planted  the 
seeds  of  jealousy  in  the  ardent  bosoms  of  Emilia 
and  Lucia,  the  deft  Italian  maids  of  the  Melville 
household. 

"Ah!  Bella  ragazza,"  mused  the  thrifty  spy, 
"a  half  of  each  hundred  lire  note  shall  go  in  my 
own  pocket !  I  will  play  these  pretty  women  devils 
off  against  each  other. 

"And,  II  Signore  Clark  shall  pay  heavily  for 
what  Emilia  has  already  told  me  of  the  sly  meet- 
ing at  the  Cecilia  Metella !  I  shall  pay  off  a  score 
to  this  young  upstart  Captain !"  He  strode  home, 
humming  "Piano,  piano, — por  mi  Vendetta!" 

Rawdon  Clark  bounded  from  his  chair  in  de- 
light the  next  day,  when  Maspero  sent  him  a  fur- 
tive message : 

"The  young  Vice  Consul  General  lies  in  a  rav- 
ing delirium  at  his  rooms  on  the  Corso.  The 
Roman  fever  has  him  in  its  deadly  grip.  I  will 


RAWDON  CLARK  TAKES  A  HAND.        115 

have  a  full  report  of  the  Hawthorn  bellissima  for 
you  when  we  meet  to-night." 

"Here's  luck!"  shouted  Clark,  in  joy.  "The 
fellow  is  weakened  with  his  wounds!  He  will 
either  die  or  else  be  laid  out  for  three  months — 
and  I  will  surely  have  Miss  Icicle  melted  down 
into  Mrs.  Clark  long  before  then!  Hurrah  for 
the  fever!" 

A  wave  of  redoubled  gossip  swept  over  the 
American  colony,  and  the  journals  feel  on  with 
alacrity  into  the  garbled  stories  which,  in  spite  of 
Melville's  calm  denials,  entangled  the  names  of 
the  graceful  heiress  and  the  young  Captain,  by 
whose  tossing  bed  of  pain  the  grave-eyed  Doctor 
Corvini  muttered,  "Two  to  one  on  death !  Only 
a  miracle  can  save  him ! 

"Alone, — so  young, — a  stranger  in  a  far  land 
— to  die  like  a  dog  in  the  flower  of  his  youth,  it 
is  hard !" 

And  yet,  around  Landon's  sick  bed  rallied  all 
the  genuine  friends  of  the  Eveless  Paradise,  and 
the  Hollingsworths  and  Melvilles  only  waited  his 
return  of  reason  to  hale  him  away  into  their  min- 
istering hands. 

Pale-faced  and  patient,  Agnes  Hawthorn,  silent 


116  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

in  her  maidenly  pride,  ignorant  of  Landon's  ill- 
ness, turned  her  face  to  the  wall  and  murmured, 
"He  does  not  even  send  a  flower !  Ah !  that  hor- 
rible jargon  of  the  men  in  the  Colosseum!  His 
pride  is  greater  than  his  love,  or  he  would  give 
me  a  chance  to  thank  him  for  my  life." 

For  the  Doctor  had  bidden  them  all  not  to  ex- 
cite the  sufferer  with  the  news  of  Landon's 
seizure.  "It  might  bring  a  fever  on  her!  They 
were  exposed  together  to  the  night  air." 

Mr.  Rawdon  Clark,  delightedly  conferring  wit'h 
Maspero,  was  in  the  seventh  heaven  of  joy  when 
General  Rufus  Hatcher  arrived,  falling  headlong 
into  the  trap  of  the  "testimonial  dinner." 

"What  he  cannot  tell  me,  Bolton  will,"  gleefully 
exclaimed  Clark,  as  he  reread  a  cablegram  from 
his  agent,  now  in  America: 

"Mailed  letter  with  full  particulars.  Perfect 
success.  Send  you  his  whole  story.  He  was 
forced  shamefully  out  of  the  army." 

The  fortnight  which  followed  the  receipt  of  this 
telegram  was  the  very  busiest  one  of  Rawdon 
Clark's  active  life. 

There  was  a  vicious  sparkle  in  the  eyes  of  the 
owner  of  the  Elkhorn  mine  of  Leadville. 


RAWDON  CLARK  TAKES  A  HAND.        117 

His  step  was  springy  and  his  smile  joyous,  for 
the  tide  was  bearing  him  bravely  on. 

And  yet  he  tossed  uneasily  upon  his  pillow  at 
night,  murmuring,  "I  must  have  all  the  facts, 
then,  as  this  army  fellow  is  making  a  strong  fight 
against  death.  I  must  find  a  way  to  chase  him 
out  of  here." 

He  burned  with  impatience  for  the  arrival  of 
Barker  Bolton's  letter. 

Every  evening  he  was  closeted  at  the  Hotel 
Quirinale  with  the  adroit  Maspero,  whose  lean 
pockets  were  now  beginning  to  be  well  lined. 

In  spite  of  a  considerable  use  of  backsheesh,  the 
Italian  had  as  yet  gained  no  substantial  victory 
over  the  crafty  housemaids. 

"Go  ahead,  use  patience  and  plenty  of  money, 
Maspero,"  urged  Clark.  "The  women  must  be 
made  to  talk !" 

"Ah !  Signore,"  sighed  Maspero.  "These  Mel- 
villes  are  rich ;  the  women  have  good  places !  And 
they  fear  to  lose  them !" 

Clark  bounded  to  his  feet  in  a  sudden  rage. 

"Find  out  their  price !  They  say  every  woman 
has  her  price!  If  you  can  unlock  this  mystery, 


118  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

I  will  not  spare  my  cash — and  I  will  protect  them 
— and  you! 

"Remember,  Sidney  Landon  is  your  enemy.  If 
he  ever  recovers  and  is  made  Consul  General, — 
out  you  go!  You  know  that  he  hates  you!" 

"Yes ;  and  you  shall  know  all !  7  will  have  my 
revenge !  Wait  but  another  week !" 

Fortune  had  singularly  favored  Rawdon  Clark's 
sinister  designs.  For,  Mrs.  Myra  Brandon's  emo- 
tional letters  praying  "for  access  to  her  darling" 
supplemented  Miss  Hawthorn's  very  natural  de- 
sire to  return  to  the  Hotel  Costanzi. 

And  these  letters  of  Clark's  loquacious  ally  had 
made  plain  to  her  the  fact  of  Landon's  serious 
illness. 

With  womanly  directness,  Agnes  Hawthorn 
secretly  questioned  Doctor  Cesare  Corvini,  who 
sighed  as  he  replied,  "It  is  but  too  true!  Captain 
Landon  must  be  removed  soon  from  his  damp 
rooms  on  the  Corso,  either  to  the  hill  here,  or  else 
to  a  Hospital.  He  is  too  weak  to  be  moved  away 
to  the  Riviera !  His  mind  is  still  wandering,  and 
he  seems  friendless  and  alone." 

That  very  evening,  a  council  of  war  between 
Mrs.  Melville,  Mrs.  Hollingsworth  and  the  heiress 


RAWDON  CLARK  TAKES  A  HAND.       119 

led  to  the  instant  translation  of  Miss  Agnes  to  the 
Costanzi,  at  which  palatial  oasis  Mrs.  Myra  Bran- 
don, with  outspread  arms,  swooped  down  upon  the 
helpless  girl. 

As  the  days  ran  on,  the  burly  frame  of  Robert 
Brandon  haunted  the  Costanzi. 

Mr.  Rawdon  Clark's  floral  offerings  and  daily 
carte  de  visite,  with  Mrs.  Myra's  artful  ap- 
proaches paved  the  way  for  the  later  wooing  which 
was  now  the  millionaire's  only  object  in  life. 

"She  will  open  every  door  for  me  at  home,"  he 
chuckled,  while  honest  Frank  Hatton's  blood 
boiled  to  read  the  syndicated  social  "relations" 
artfully  padded  out,  and  published,  broadcast,  in 
America,  hinting  with  all  too  transparent  vague- 
ness at  the  "approaching  nuptials"  of  the  western 
Crcesus  with  the  "famed  American  beauty." 

"Thank  God,  poor  Landon  can  not  read  this 
slush,"  muttered  Hatton,  who  now  divided  the 
post  of  honor  at  Landon's  bedside,  with  all  his 
loyal  comrades  of  the  Eveless  Paradise. 

Knowing  Arthur  Melville's  thoroughbred  na- 
ture,— Hatton  was  not  astonished  when  Doctor 
Cesare  Corvini,  with  the  Consul  General  and  a 
watchful  staff,  cautiously  removed  the  fever- 


120  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

stricken  man  to  the  special  apartments  in  the 
Palazzo  Vecchio,  where  the  Melvilles  and  Hol- 
lingsworths — a  brave  Samaritan  quartette — took 
charge  of  Landon's  fight  for  life. 

Little  Rose  in  Bloom,  Miss  Elsie,  had  been  duly 
sent  away  to  Tivoli,  and  in  the  long  December 
days, — Gertrude  Melville  and  Elaine  Rollings- 
worth  watched  the  sick  man  by  whose  bedside  a 
sweet-faced  Sister  of  Charity  sat,  ever  a  guardian 
angel. 

Down  at  the  Eveless  Paradise,  Forrest  Grimes 
and  Frank  Hatton  gloomily  conferred  in  impa- 
tient indignation. 

For  persistent  rumors,  derogatory  and  disgrace- 
ful to  Landon,  were  now  floating  through  club 
and  salon,  and  agitating  the  American  colony. 

"If  I  could  only  trace  these  things  directly  to 
Clark,  I  would  go  and  cowhide  him,"  growled 
Grimes,  "but,  by  Heavens,  we  must  wait  and  bide 
our  time!" 

Hatton  gloomily  shook  his  head.  There  were 
flying  stories  of  Landon's  impending  removal,and 
hints  that  the  shooting  on  the  Via  Appia  amount- 
ed to  a  cruel  intended  murder. 

The  Roman  authorities  had  artfully  hushed  up 


RAWDON  CLARK  TAKES  A  HAND.        121 

all  press  comment,  and  slanderous  tongues  began 
to  connect  the  affair  with  some  disgraceful  social 
intrigue. 

"Now,  Grimes,"  said  Hatton,  "it  would  be  just 
like  this  fellow  Maspero  to  try  and  blacken  Lan- 
don's  name !  We  must  wait  for  clearer  skies  and 
happier  days!  For  God's  sake,  hold  your  hand 
off  Clark  as  yet!" 

Mr.  Rawdon  Clark's  brilliant  social  welcome  of 
the  game  old  fire-eater,  General  Rufus  Hatcher, 
had  been  delayed  by  the  bold  warrior  falling  into 
the  hospitable  clutches  of  Consul  Swasey  at  Nice. 

But,  the  astute  Clark  had  rallied  the  whole  Bran- 
don-led faction  of  Rome.  The  banquet-day  was 
arranged,  with  a  reception  and  soiree  dansante. 

Upon  the  Committee  of  Arrangements  the 
princely  host  had  judiciously  omitted  the  names 
of  the  Minister  Resident  and  the  Consul  General. 

"Tit  for  tat,"  growled  Clark.  "I  will  even  up 
matters  with  these  local  tin  gods." 

He  was  all  dressed  ready  to  take  the  train  and 
run  up  to  Florence  when  Jacopo  Maspero,  with 
well  affected  excitement,  hurriedly  sought  him 
out. 

"Excellenza,"   whispered  the  sly  Italian.     "I 


122  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

have  at  last  brought  the  women  to  the  talking 
point.  They  know  the  whole  affair — but,  it  is  a 
matter  of  ten  thousand  lire" 

"Come  to  the  bank  with  me,"  joyfully  cried 
Clark.  "There  is  no  time  to  lose.  I  hear  this 
fellow  is  beginning  to  convalesce,  and  I  don't 
want  General  Hatcher  to  meet  him  until  I  have 
got  the  whole  story  of  his  leaving  the  army  out 
of  the  old  soldier." 

In  half  an  hour,  Maspero  stole  away  with  ten 
one-thousand  lire  notes  in  his  pocket,  leaving 
Clark,  open-eyed  in  wonder,  over  a  letter  found 
waiting  at  the  bank,  with  Mr.  Barker  Bolton's 
secret  report. 

"You  shall  know  all  on  your  return,"  cried 
Maspero.  "I  stake  my  life  upon  ft." 

All  that  afternoon,  while  Rawdon  Clark  lay 
back  in  his  luxurious  first-class  compartment,  he 
mused  over  the  disclosures  of  Bolton's  letter.  He 
had  read  it  over  and  over  again,  with  a  sense  of 
delicious  power. 

"So,  the  gallant  Captain  left  the  army  for  the 
army's  good!  He  is  a  sly  one!  When  I  get  to 
Florence,  I  must  cable  to  Bolton." 

"Trust  to  a  woman's  desire  for  vengeance!" 


RAWDON  CLARK  TAKES  A  HAND.       123 

Clark  laughed,  with  a  triumphant  delight  as  he 
thought  of  how  Mrs.  Dora  Prindle,  in  far-off 
Colorado,  had  fallen  into  Bolton's  artfully  set 
trap. 

"I  suppose  that  this  young  Landon  was  the 
regimental  lady  killer?"  mused  the  millionaire, 
"and  yet,  bitterly  neglected  old  'Black  Bill'  Prin- 
dle's  wife. 

"Wrong  policy!  Wrong  policy  for  an  army 
Lothario !  Captains  should  be  duly  devoted  to  the 
wives  of  field  officers,  lest  these  same  experienced 
dames  may  turn  again  and  rend  them !" 

But,  with  a  cold,  world-worn  prudence, — the 
crafty  wooer  decided  that  the  contents  of  the  let- 
ter must  only  be  used  later,  and  through  a 
woman's  hand,  as  a  stab  in  the  dark ! 

He  laughed  gaily,  "Myra  Brandon  is  the  party 
to  handle  this  bomb.  It  must  not  be  hurled  by 
my  hand." 

But  he  carefully  extracted  a  series  of  names, 
dates  and  facts  from  the  letter,  copying  them  in 
his  private  betting  book.  He  complacently  lit  a 
cigar,  as  he  murmured: 

"Bolton  certainly  got  it  up  in  good  form — Dora 
Prindle's  letter,  with  our  names  judiciously  elim- 


124  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

inated.  It  can  be  very  neatly  used  in  its  present 
form." 

After  Rawdon  Clark  had  telegraphed  to  his 
agent,  from  Florence,  he  gave  himself  up  to  the 
enthusiasm  of  the  moment. 

For,  he  triumphantly  captured  the  social  lion 
of  the  hour. 

General  Rufus  Hatcher  had  been  of  real  service 
to  the  great  mine  owners  of  Colorado  in  the  past. 

Indian  foray,  miners'  strikes,  popular  tumults 
had  all  been  met  by  the  brave  old  General  with 
unerring  sagacity  and  bravery. 

It  was  after  a  sumptuous  dinner  that  Clark  and 
his  guest,  lighting  their  Perfectos,  dropped  into 
a  cosy  chat. 

Hatcher  was  visibly  flattered  at  the  social  prep- 
arations in  his  honor. 

With  an  affected  carelessness,  Clark  brought  up 
the  various  leaders  of  the  Roman  colony.  He 
winced  a  bit  when  the  old  retired  Cavalry  General 
gave  vent  to  his  enthusiasm  for  the  Melvilles. 

"I  can't  tell  you  much  about  our  officials,  Gen- 
eral," reflectively  said  Clark.  "I  keep  away  from 
them  all,  on  principle,  but  I  believe  that  they  have 


RAWDON  CLARK  TAKES  A  HAND.        125 

a  young  army  fellow  now  at  the  Consulate  Gen- 
eral, a  Captain  Sidney  Landon." 

The  old  warrior  brightened  visibly.  "One  of 
the  finest  fellows  I  ever  met, — in  fact,  I  came 
here  largely  to  see  him,  as  well  as  to  do  Italy !  I 
want  him  to  take  back  his  old  rank  in  the  army. 
Miles  Atwater,  his  Colonel,  has  made  me  promise 
to  use  my  influence!  He  was  one  of  the  very 
best  young  officers  in  the  army !" 

"I  thought  he  was  still  on  the  active  list,"  art- 
fully interjected  Clark,  skillfully  filling  the  Gen- 
eral's glass. 

The  old  soldier  mournfully  shook  his  old  gray 
head. 

"There  is  a  mystery  in  Landon's  leaving  the 
service  that  I  must  try  and  fathom.  He  made  a 
splendid  reputation  in  our  ten  years'  Indian  wars 
with  the  Sioux  and  Cheyennes.  I  tried  to  get  him 
on  my  staff  when  I  commanded  the  Department. 
He  would  stick  with  his  regiment. 

"On  the  very  eve  of  his  promotion  to  a  Ma- 
jority, he  suddenly  jumps  the  Regiment,  gets 
transferred  to  another  Cavalry  corps,  then,  with- 
out a  word,  in  a  few  months  pops  in  his  resigna- 
tion and  leaves  the  service. 


126  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

"It's  ruin  for  such  a  man  to  quit  his  profes- 
sion. Now,  Atwater  has  prevailed  on  the  Presi- 
dent to  appoint  him  on  the  staff,  so  as  to  get  him 
back  in  the  army,  and  then  assign  him  to  his  old 
command!  So  far,  he  has  stubbornly  refused." 

"Anything  wrong  with  his  record ;  any  hidden 
disgrace?"  questioned  Clark. 

"You  don't  know  the  man !  He  is  the  very  soul 
of  honor.  It's  a  mystery.  Even  Atwater  knows 
nothing!"  cried  Hatcher,  with  an  ominous  flash 
of  his  eyes. 

"I  am  sorry  for  the  young  man,"  artfully  in- 
terjected Clark.  "He  is  lying  very  low  with 
Roman  fever  at  the  Melvilles,  now!  No  one  is 
allowed  to  see  him !" 

"My  God !  I  can't  get  to  Rome  too  soon !"  ex- 
claimed the  old  General.  "Tell  me  all  you  know 
of  it?" 

And  so,  they  talked  on,  long  into  the  night. 


BOOK  II 
ADVERSE  GALES 


BOOK  II. 
ADVERSE  GALES. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

AT    THE    AMERICAN     CLUB — "l    WILL     HAVE    RE- 
VENGE!" 

Rawdon  Clark,  with  judicious  tact,  left  the 
moody  old  General  to  his  anxieties  the  next  morn- 
ing, for  the  anxious  warrior  had  decided  to  push 
on  at  once  to  Rome,  abandoning  the  first  glimpses 
of  Florence. 

The  capitalist  did  not  fail  to  note  that  General 
Hatcher  had  telegraphed  to  Melville  for  an  imme- 
diate report  on  Landon's  condition,  with  orders 
to  reply  to  Orvieto. 

Before  they  reached  the  Eternal  City,  Hatcher 
confided  his  growing  anxieties  to  his  obsequious 
host. 

"I  am  terribly  cut  up  about  Landon,"  he  broke 
out.  "You  see,  when  a  man  suddenly  jumps  his 
regiment  and  then  leaves  the  service,  with  no 

9  129 


130  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

apparent  reason,  it  sets  people's  tongues  all  wag- 
ging at  once.  I  hold  that  a  man's  duty  to  his 
command  is  to  leave  it  with  no  cloud  of  mystery. 

"I  know  that  the  Atwaters  are  coming  over 
soon,  and  if  Landon  will  not  re-enter  his  old 
corps,  he,  at  least,  should  thoroughly  post  men 
like  Atwater  and  myself,  his  old  friends,  so  we 
will  be  able  to  meet  the  mystery  mongers.  Now, 
if  he  should  die, — the  explanation  would  be  lost 
to  us  all !" 

"Then  there  has  been  unfavorable  talk,  Gen- 
eral?" quietly  replied  the  alert  Clark. 

"Precisely!"  grumbled  the  old  veteran;  "just 
in  proportion  as  we  army  people  know  each  other's 
lives  intimately, — so  much  more  does  the  right 
exist  to  know  all  useful  and  proper  facts  of  each 
other's  lives.  It's  'all  for  one,  and  one  for  all'  in 
a  regiment  of  proper  tone." 

"From  what  you  say,  he  needs  no  vindication !" 
calmly  answered  Clark. 

"Certainly  not!"  roared  the  old  man,  "but  his 
friends  are  anxious  to  stay  the  tide  of  this  damag- 
ing gossip." 

It  was  with  an  adroit  self  effacement  that  Raw- 
don  Clark  turned  his  distinguished  guest  over  to 


AT  THE  AMERICAN  CLUB.  131 

the  Reception  Committee  on  their  arrival  at 
Rome. 

But,  Clark  was  inwardly  disturbed  when  Arthur 
Melville,  with  the  First  Secretary  of  the  Legation, 
drew  the  General  aside  for  a  few  moments. 

The  guest  of  honor  was  visibly  moved,  as  he 
beckoned  Clark  apart. 

"My  dear  old  friend,"  he  hastily  said.  "You 
must  put  off  the  serenade  and  your  formal  wel- 
come for  a  day  or  so!  I  am  going  down  to  see 
Landon. 

"Melville  tells  me  that  he  is  raving  with  an 
unexpected  return  of  the  fever.  When  I  have 
satisfied  myself  that  nothing  more  can  be  done 
with  him,  I  am  at  your  service. 

"As  for  the  public  dinner,  that  can  go  on  as  you 
have  planned,  in  three  days,  unless  Captain  Lan- 
don should  die,  in  which  case  you  must  postpone 
it  indefinitely." 

With  a  cold  bow  to  the  two  officials,  Clark  com- 
municated with  his  colleagues,  and  then  the  impa- 
tient soldier  was  driven  rapidly  away  in  the  Lega- 
tion carriage. 

The  Committee  of  Reception  nervelessly  dis- 
persed in  a  general  dissatisfaction. 


132  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

With  muttered  curses,  Rawdon  Clark  drove 
rapidly  down  the  hill  to  his  rooms,  and  sent  a 
trusty  messenger  to  summon  Maspero  to  the 
Quirinal.  There  was  no  uncertain  ring  in  the 
rich  man's  voice  as  he  demanded  a  full  report  of 
the  agent's  dirty  work. 

"I  think  that  I  can  satisfy  you  now,  Eccelenza," 
grinned  Maspero,  lighting  his  "Cavour,"  with  a 
gleam  of  satisfaction.  "I  have  drawn  out  the 
whole  story  of  the  adventure  on  the  Appian  road. 

"It  was  the  bellissima,  Mees'  Agnes  Hawthorn, 
who  was  the  companion  of  that  morning  excur- 
sion. 

"Of  course,  the  old  dame  de  compagnie, 
Madame  Montgomery,  was  taken  along  as  a  sheep 
dog." 

The  veins  stood  out  on  Clark's  throbbing  tem- 
ples as  the  crafty  scoundrel  related  the  vile  story 
built  up  by  the  two  maids  from  the  overheard 
confidences  of  Gertrude  Melville  and  the  fright- 
ened girl. 

The  tale  was  the  result  of  mean  servile  sur- 
mises. 

"Of  course,  the  poor  devil  of  a  peasant  surprised 
this  sly  couple  in  their  illicit  lovemaking,  and 


AT  THE  AMERICAN  CLUB.  133 

then — the  unlucky  contadini  was  shot  to  prevent 
his  babbling!  It  is  only  a  game  to  win  the  enor- 
mous wealth  of  this  orphan  girl  for  these  crafty 
Melvilles  and  this  handsome  adventurer. 

"Melville,  himself,  went  to  Signior  Crespiani 
and  had  the  whole  affair  hushed  up.  You  observe 
that  the  Roman  journals  suddenly  dropped  the 
whole  subject.  Now,  I  happen  to  be  your  good 
fairy  in  this. 

"One  of  my  college  chums  is  Crespiani's  pri- 
vate secretary.  I  have  visited  him,  and  I  learn  that 
financial  oil  has  been  deftly  poured  upon  the 
troubled  waters.  The  wounded  man  has  been 
released,  after  a  secret  police  examination,  and 
sent  off  to  some  village  in  the  Abruzzi  to  recu- 
perate. 

"The  three  poor  vagabonds  who  were  found 
near  the  spot  by  the  frightened  coachman  have 
scuttled  away  out  of  Rome  with  a  few  francs  I" 

"Damnation !"  cried  Clark,  starting  up.  "And 
so,  then,  all  proof  is  lost !  It  was  worth  anything 
to  me  to  fasten  the  truth  upon  these  people." 

"Not  so,"  smoothly  rejoined  Maspero.  "You 
do  not  know  the  Italian  subtlety,"  he  proudly 
cried.  "I  traced  out  through  my  friend  the  poor 


134  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

coachman  who  was  held  as  a  witness.  He  was 
released  with  a  beggarly  fifty  lire  for  his  silence. 

"Of  course,  he  fears  the  American  Minister  and 
the  all-powerful  Consul  General.  But  he  has  his 
own  ideas ! 

"He  has  looked  diligently  around  Rome  and 
found  the  fellow  who  drove  the  two  ladies  out 
on  the  memorable  day !  It  was  slyly  done !  The 
Capitano  is  a  skillful  Don  Juan !  He  left  his  own 
carriage  behind  at  the  Porta  San  Sebastiano." 

Maspero  paused  and  poured  out  a  glass  of  wine 
with  a  delightful  sense  of  enjoyment.  His  enemy 
was  under  his  foot  at  last ! 

The  swindling  official  had  learned  from  the 
Italian  office  boys  of  Landon  and  Morgan's 
nightly  delving  into  the  suspicious  accounts. 

"Diavolo!"  he  mused.  "This  man  is  as  rich 
as  Prince  Torlonia.  He  will  drive  the  Captain 
out  of  Rome  for  the  love  of  this  bella  ragazza, 
and  then,  my  place  is  safe!  I  might  even  burn  up 
all  the  accounts — as  if  by  accident." 

"Maspero!"  harshly  cried  Rawdon  Clark.  "I 
must  see  both  these  men.  I  must  know  the  whole 
story !" 

"Softly,"  smilingly  answered  Jacopo  Maspero. 


AT  THE  AMERICAN  CLUB.  135 

"Remember  that  we  are  all  three  Italians!  You 
can  not  even  talk  to  these  men.  You  know  not 
the  language.  They  only  trust  me,  for  I  have 
friends  in  the  Italian  courts,  —  wheels  within 
wheels.  I  have  my  own  revenge  to  work  upon 
this  military  busybody! 

"As  for  your  affair, — you  only  want  the  girl! 
It  is  as  you  see,  Signior," — he  paused  impres- 
sively,— "only  a  question  of  money!" 

"How  much  ?"  doggedly  demanded  Clark,  glar- 
ing at  the  spy,  now  his  master. 

"We  have  not  as  yet  fixed  our  price,"  sullenly 
answered  Maspero,  "but  you  will  be  our  first  cus- 
tomer! You  see,  there  is  the  lady  herself, — this 
young  heiress ! 

"If  this  Capitano  should  die,  she  will  be  a  good 
customer  for  me.  If  he  lives,  perhaps  then  she 
will  be  a  better  one! 

"And — you  must  outbid  them  all!  The  two 
women  and  the  coachmen  are  in  my  hands!  If 
you  interfere,  then  every  mouth  will  be  shut  for- 
ever ! 

"You  must  be  the  best  paymaster  of  all! 

"Now,"  continued  Maspero,  "I  will  throw  in 
something  gratis. 


136  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"It  was  to  cover  up  the  possible  discovery  that 
Signora  Melville  (who  has  all  this  girl's  secrets) 
arranged  the  dinner  and  the  night  visit  to  the 
Coliseo. 

"LandonandMees'  Hawthorn  wandered  off  to- 
gether to  arrange  their  stories,  and  there  she  fell 
and  broke  her  ankle.  She  was  brought  home  at 
midnight. 

"But  it  is  Melville  who  has  smoothed  the  whole 
thing  over  with  Crespiani !  This  cruel  American 
should  go  to  prison  for  shooting  that  poor  man ! 
Melville  and  his  wife  are  greedy,  and  want  to 
divide  the  girl's  money  with  this  starving  Cap- 
tain!" 

"Nonsense !"  cried  Clark.    "They  are  well  off !" 

"Bah !  No  one  has  ^enough  money,"  snarled 
Maspero.  "If  he  was  so  rich,  why  would  he  paint, 
— paint, — paint  ?  And  they  live  expensively.  Why 
does  he  hold  the  consular  place,  with  its  small 
salary  ?  For  need  of  money !" 

"You  may  be  right,  Maspero,"  sharply  cried 
Clark.  "Meanwhile  keep  all  these  people  in  line ! 
I  will  think  it  all  over!  As  you  say,  it  makes 
some  difference  if  this  fellow  is  alive  or  dead !  If 
he  dies,  you  and  I  are  well  rid  of  him !" 


AT  THE  AMERICAN  CLUB.  137 

"I  think  that  he  will,"  significantly  said  the 
spy.  "I  know  our  good  old  Roman  fever!  It 
burns  and  burns!" 

"Look  here,"  answered  Clark.  "Take  this 
thousand  lire  and  give  the  coachman  a  few  hun- 
dreds !  You  and  I  will  talk  later !" 

"So,  my  fair  dove;  my  fond  dove,"  mused 
Clark,  as  he  drove  away  through  the  cool  Decem- 
ber night.  "You  are  now  in  my  power!  By 
Heavens!  You  shall  be  my  wife,  and  then  I'll 
train  you,  see  if  I  don't!  I  must  gain  the  whole 
story  of  this  fellow's  shameful  past,  and  chase 
him  away  from  here! 

"Once  he  is  ousted,  Myra  Brandon  shall  open 
Agnes  Hawthorn's  eyes." 

While  he  was  revolving  a  new  telegram  to  his 
agent,  Barker  Bolton,  he  felt  a  coldness  at  heart, 
which  even  his  rich  furred  coat  could  not  avert. 

"Damn  these  romantic  women!  To  run  after 
a  penniless  shoulder-strapped  dandy!  She  may 
not  be  so  easy  to  handle  after  all.  He  has  touched 
her  fancy !  I  must  crush  him !  There  is  no  half 
way  now!  And  Signior  Maspero, — he's  a  beau- 
tiful blackmailer !  I  will  not  need  him  long !  I'll 


138  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

make  a  short  campaign  of  it.     Sharp  and  de- 
cisive!" 

While  Mr.  Rawdon  Clark  was  busied  at  the 
telegraph  office  in  weaving  his  web  around  the 
victim-to-be,  General  Hatcher  and  Arthur  Mel- 
ville silently  watched  Sidney  Landon,  uneasily 
tossing  upon  his  bed  of  pain.  The  hollow-eyed 
sufferer  was  now  living  in  a  dead  past !  His  fever- 
ish lips  moved  incessantly,  and  Melville  shook  his 
head  gravely. 

"Do  you  know  anything  of  his  family!"  sadly 
said  the  Consul  General.  "I  have  sealed  up  all 
his  effects,  jointly  with  Hatton.  I  do  not  even 
know  whom  to  communicate  with  if  he  should 
die." 

"I  believe  that  he  is  alone  in  the  world,  poor 
fellow,"  answered  the  old  soldier.  "He  is  always 
talking  of  Ethel, — calling  for  Ethel,"  said  Mel- 
ville; "perhaps  she  is  a  sister." 

The  loyal  old  soldier  started  as  if  he  had  been 
shot. 

"There  is  no  such  person,"  he  huskily  said,  "as 
far  as  I  know!"  And  then,  they  left  the  young 
man  to  fight  out  his  battle  under  the  saddened 
eyes  of  the  watching  nun. 


AT  THE  AMERICAN  CLUB.  139 

Hatcher  and  Melville  parted  in  uneasy  forebod- 
ings. 

"See  here,"  broke  out  the  veteran.  "I've  got 
this  reception  and  dinner,  and  all  that  humbug  on 
hand.  I  suppose  I  will  have  to  go  through  with 
it! 

"Clark  is  very  kind  and  forward.  When  it's 
all  over,  I'll  come  back  to  you.  If  there's  any  un- 
favorable turn,  send  to  me  instantly  and  I'll  break 
everything  off!  What  does  Corvini  say?" 

"An  even  chance,  with  Death  holding  a  shade 
the  stronger  cards !"  mournfully  replied  Melville. 
"Poor  Ethel!  whoever  she  may  be!" 

General  Rufus  Hatcher  was  glad  to  escape 
from  the  house  of  sickness.  He  dared  not  ques- 
tion himself  as  he  was  driven  up  to  the  Costanzi. 

"If  the  Atwaters  were  only  here,  I  could  talk 
plainly  to  Mary!  Ethel!  Ethel!  Can  there  be 
anything  in  this?" 

For  a  vague  suspicion  had,  at  last,  entered  the 
old  man's  mind — the  echo  of  a  half-forgotten 
story.  He  roused  himself  as  he  reached  his 
hotel,  where  a  crowd  of  journalists  were  ready 
to  fall  upon  him,  notebook  in  hand! 


140  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

"I'll  not  believe  it,"  he  growled.  "If  it  was 
anyone  but  old  Dora  Prindle,  that  regimental 
ghoul,  I  might  believe;"  and  yet,  long  after  he 
was  released  from  the  interviewers,  the  clinging 
suspicions  took  unwelcome  shapes. 

"//  it  was  that,"  he  growled,  "I  don't  wonder 
that  he  left  the  army !  My  God !  It  can  not  be ! 
I  must  find  out  that  it  was  impossible!" 

The  Hotel  Costanzi  soon  blazed  with  the 
splendors  of  General  Hatcher's  serenade,  levee, 
and  the  gatherings  of  loyal  Americans. 

The  beaming  face  of  Mr.  Rawdon  Clark 
smiled  out  over  the  glories  of  that  ostentatious 
banquet  which  astonished  all  Rome  a  few  days 
later.  There  was  but  one  shade  upon  the  social 
triumph  of  the  millionaire. 

It  was  the  unwelcome  telegram  which  was 
handed  to  him  while  presiding  over  the  feast, 
and  listening  to  General  Hatcher's  naive  and  sol- 
dierly speech  of  the  evening. 

Clark  gritted  his  teeth  as  he  read  that  cable- 
gram from  far  over  the  rolling  green  Atlantic. 
The  words  were  pregnant  with  a  bitter  disap- 
pointment. They  read: 


AT  THE  AMERICAN  CLUB.  141 

"Impossible.  Major  Murray  Raynor  was 
killed  last  week  in  General  Wilton's  fight  with 
the  Nez  Perce  Indians.  Wait  your  orders." 

"The  Devil  himself  fights  against  me,"  mur- 
mured Clark;  and  yet,  after  a  couple  of  glasses 
of  champagne,  he  recovered  his  usual  calm. 

"It  may  be  just  as  well,"  mused  the  schemer, 
"for,  if  his  guilt  can  not  be  absolutely  proven  from 
Dora  Prindle's  letter,  his  innocence  never  can  be! 
But  now  I  will  have  to  buy  in  Maspero  and  work 
him  for  all  he  is  worth." 

As  a  curious  experiment,  before  the  merry 
guests  separated,  Clark  carelessly  approached 
General  Hatcher. 

"I  see  they  are  fighting  again,  out  in  Mon- 
tana," the  miner  remarked.  "General  Wilton  has 
had  a  stiff  fight  with  the  Nez  Perces,  and  Major 
Murray  Raynor  was  killed." 

Hatcher  started  back,  crying,  "How  do  you 
know  this?  Did  you  know  Raynor?" 

"Not  personally,"  calmly  answered  Clark.  "I 
was  looking  for  the  control  of  a  Montana  copper 
mine,  and  had  authorized  my  agent  to  buy  out 
an  interest  of  this  man,  and  I  have  a  cable  to- 


142  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

night  from  my  man  out  there  that  he  was  killed 
a  week  ago !  News  is  just  in." 

Rufus  Hatcher  dropped  into  a  chair.  "Poor 
Murray,"  he  slowly  said.  "He  was  a  fine  soldier, 
as  Captain  in  the  Grays,  he  was  Landon's  com- 
manding officer.  It's  a  great  loss  to  the  service." 

Under  the  Roman  stars  that  night,  Rufus 
Hatcher  walked  the  gardens  of  the  Costanzi. 

"Ethel !  Ethel !"  he  groaned.  "There  is  now 
no  way  of  finding  out  the  truth !  I  dare  not  speak 
to  Landon, — and  even  the  Atwaters  can  not  roll 
away  the  stone  from  the  tomb.  There  is  no  one 
left  to  tell  the  whole  truth!" 

There  was  a  ripple  of  sympathy  in  the  Ameri- 
can colony  a  week  later,  when  Doctor  Corvini 
announced  the  turn  of  the  tide  in  the  protracted 
illness  of  Captain  Sidney  Landon. 

"Weak,  but  rational  now;  a  fortnight  more 
— with  absolute  seclusion,  and  no  undue  excite- 
ment, will  put  him  far  along  toward  the  line  of 
safety." 

And  so,  General  Hatcher,  borne  along  in 
triumph  by  the  exuberant  Brandons,  a  led  lion 
in  the  hands  of  the  watchful  Clark,  was  hurried 
on  from  gallery  to  Vatican, — from  feast  to  revel^ 


AT  THE  AMERICAN  CLUB.  143 

— from  the  Catacombs  to  the  Villa  Borghese, — 
and  only  stole  away  for  a  quiet  hour  to  the 
Palazzo  Vecchio,  where  the  watch  over  Sidney 
Landon  was  not  a  moment  relaxed. 

"Next  week,  next  week,  my  good  sir,"  pleaded 
the  suave  Corvini  to  the  impatient  veteran. 

There  was  a  grand  celebration  at  the  Eveless 
Paradise  upon  the  announcement  of  Landon's 
probable  recovery,  Forrest  Grimes  skillfully  elim- 
inating Clark  and  Brandon,  presided  over  the 
banner-draped  feast,  whereat  General  Hatcher 
was  forced  to  fight  his  battles  over  again,  under 
hospitable  volleys  of  champagne. 

In  all  these  days,  the  watchful  capitalist  had 
crept  nearer  and  nearer  to  the  avowed  social  in- 
timacy of  Miss  Agnes  Hawthorn,  the  veiled  god- 
dess of  beauty,  still  chained  to  the  chaise  tongue. 

Rawdon  Clark  well  knew  the  effect  of  quiet 
persistence,  and  with  a  skillful  propitiation  of 
Mrs.  Montgomery  and  the  assiduous  secret  work 
of  Mrs.  Myra  Brandon,  he  was  at  last  launched 
as  the  recognized  "ami  de  maison." 

The  tacit  avoidance  of  the  Brandon  clique  by 
Madame  Gertrude  Melville  enabled  Miss  Haw- 


144  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

thorn  to  treat  with  the  two  rival  camps  of  Roman 
society. 

But  her  soul's  confidence  was  given  alone  to 
the  bright-hearted  Consular  lady.  The  helpless 
heiress  could  not  but  see  the  drift  of  her  most 
assiduous  advisers. 

Rawdon  Clark's  social  headquarters  were  now 
the  Brandon  household,  where  the  recurrent  hos- 
pitalities spoke  strongly  of  an  assisting  financial 
element. 

"Panem  et  circenses"  draws  the  crowd,  and 
even  General  Rufus  Hatcher  was  not  proof 
against  the  seductions  of  the  ambitious  Myra. 

She  it  was  who  gathered  from  villa  and  hotel 
— from  the  recurrent  tourists  and  passing  nota- 
bilities— the  crowd  who  enjoyed  the  splendid 
feasts  and  receptions  supported  secretly  by  Raw- 
don Clark's  ever  open  purse.  The  poor  old  sol- 
dier, harmlessly  vain,  accepted  all  this  homage. 

The  baffled  General  waited  wearily  for  Doctor 
Corvini  to  open  the  doors  of  Landon's  sick  room, 
but  the  gentle  professional  tyrant  simply  laid  his 
finger  on  his  lip,  smilingly  saying  "Aspetto !" 

Arthur  Melville  had  relapsed  again  into  his 
painting  mood,  now  the  danger  was  over,  and  he 


AT  THE  AMERICAN  CLUB.  145 

was  either  buried  in  his  studio,  or  else  away  in 
the  hills  at  Tivoli  with  his  still  banished  Rose  in 
Bloom. 

No  one  in  Rome  but  Gertrude  Melville  knew  of 
the  longing  solicitude  with  which  Agnes  Haw- 
thorn waited  for  the  end  of  Landon's  long 
struggle  against  death. 

Some  mysterious  feeling  kept  her  from  sharing 
her  heart  with  Mrs.  Montgomery,  who, — simple 
soul — had  yielded,  blindfolded,  to  the  continued 
seduction  of  Clark's  flatteries,  his  unvarying 
"kindness"  and  the  discreetly  offered  presents 
heaped  upon  her  by  that  princess  of  picture  brok- 
ers, Myra  Brandon. 

It  was  Clark's  purse  which  was  the  hidden 
magnet  drawing  the  simple  old  widow  over  into 
the  camp  of  circumvallation  which  the  determined 
Clark  was  fast  closing  around  his  intended  bride. 

Miss  Hawthorn  now  only  awaited  the  coming 
of  the  early  spring  to  seek  softer  skies  than  win- 
try Rome,  and  an  uneasy  feeling  crept  into  her 
heart ;  for,  she  could  not  deceive  herself  as  to  the 
purport  of  Rawdon  Clark's  unflagging  wooing. 

And  yet,  still  chained  within  her  winter  apart- 
ment, now  made  into  a  temporary  tropical  bower, 
10 


146  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

she  waited,  heart  hungry,  to  meet  Sidney  Landon 
and  listen  to  the  still  unasked  question. 

Gertrude  Melville  was  the  faithful  keeper  of  a 
note,  written  as  the  final  successor  of  twenty  de- 
stroyed ones,  in  which  she  conveyed  to  Landon 
her  burning  solicitude  for  his  fate.  "Let  it  be  the 
first  thing  he  listens  to,  darling,  if  God  gives  him 
back  his  reason,"  she  said  with  fleeting  blushes. 

Fate  ordained  that  when  Sidney  Landon  opened 
his  eyes  to  a  restored  mental  life  the  delicate  and 
lovely  face  of  Gertrude  Melville  was  the  first  one 
to  meet  his  eye. 

The  window  was  open,  for  a  fugitive  day  of 
ethereal  softness  was  brooding  upon  the  Eternal 
City, — the  ilex  tops  were  waving  against  the  blue 
sky,  and  the  gurgle  of  the  ruined  fountain  below 
alone  broke  the  dreamy  silence. 

Suddenly,  from  far  below,  was  wafted  up  the 
thrilling  notes  of  a  proud  military  march,  as  the 
Bersaglieri  Brigade  swept  out  for  a  practice  tour. 

The  soldierly  instinct  recalled  Landon's  wan- 
dering mind,  he  strove  to  raise  his  head,  passed 
one  thin  and  wasted  hand  over  the  unaccustomed 
beard,  and  then  his  head  fell  back  in  weakness. 


AT  THE  AMERICAN  CLUB.  147 

It  was  half  an  hour  before  his  feeble  whisper 
reached  Gertrude  Melville's  ear. 

"How  did  I  come  here ;  what  is  the  matt  erf" 

The  haggard  eyes  feasted  long  upon  her  beau- 
tiful face,  for  it  seemed  to  him  that  he  was  in 
some  earthly  heaven,  some  fabled  sublunary 
Paradise. 

Then  the  silent  nun  arose  from  the  bedside 
and,  falling  upon  her  knees  before  a  little  prie 
Dieu,  thanked  God  for  a  life  restored. 

The  week  after  Landon's  mental  reawakening 
showed  the  rapid  upward  sweep  of  Life's  curve, 
and  Gertrude  Melville  had  penned  a  few  words 
in  answer  to  the  shy,  proud  epistle  of  the  anxious 
heiress. 

"Say  that  I  must  thank  her  myself,  for  words 
fail  me !  I  shall  make  my  pilgrimage  to  see  her." 

General  Rufus  Hatcher,  away  on  his  flying  trip 
to  Sicily,  was  duly  telegraphed  for, — and  be- 
stirred himself  to  a  return  to  Rome. 

There  was  but  one  shadow  upon  Landon's  re- 
covery. It  was  at  the  end  of  the  second  week  of 
convalescence,  when  Doctor  Corvini  cheerfully 
clapped  his  hands  in  joy. 

"Victoria,"  he  cried.     "In  another  week  you 


148  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

may  drive  out  and  begin  to  take  the  air  under 
careful  attendance.  Miss  Hawthorn,  too,  will  re- 
duce my  list  of  patients,  for,  with  the  safeguard 
of  crutches,  she  can  soon  leave  her  palace  prison 
at  the  Costanzi." 

Arthur  Melville,  jealously  guarding  Landon's 
private  letters,  was  acting  as  a  volunteer  amanu- 
ensis, when  he  suddenly  bethought  him  of  Lan- 
don's fever  ravings. 

"These  look  to  be  only  official  letters,"  he  said. 
"Can  I  perhaps  write  or  cable  to  any  of  your  fam- 
ily. You  were  in  your  fever  always  speaking  of 
Ethel — "  and  then,  the  gentle-hearted  artist 
started  as  a  spasm  of  pain  passed  over  Landon's 
pale  face. 

"Drop  that  name  for  God's  sake,  Melville,"  he 
groaned.  "I  have  no  family — no  ties — there  is 
no  Ethel  of  my  blood  in  this  world !" 

Melville  stole  away  and  left  the  soldier  to  battle 
with  dark  thoughts  which  seemed  to  encompass 
him.  And  a  fever  spasm  seized  the  unrestful 
patient  once  more. 

"Certainly,  no  sister" — mused  Melville  as  he 
betook  himself  to  his  brushes.  The  only  gleam  of 
brightness  in  Landon's  life  after  a  few  days' 


AT  THE  AMERICAN  CLUB.  149 

mending  was  the  cautious  advent  of  Forrest 
Grimes  and  Frank  Hatton  as  the  advance  guard 
of  the  Club  of  the  Eveless  Paradise. 

They  had  claimed  from  the  overjoyed  Doctor 
Corvini  the  right  to  be  the  first  to  convey  the  con- 
valescent out  into  the  mellow  sunlight.  And  to 
this,  Captain  Sidney  Landon  gladly  assented. 
He  recognized  the  generous  self  devotion  with 
which  the  Melvilles  had  turned  their  house  into  a 
fever  hospital  for  six  weeks. 

There,  too,  was  little  Elsie,  "Rose  in  Bloom," 
pining  at  Tivoli  for  the  home  quarantine  to  be 
lifted. 

Doctor  Corvini  was  proud  of  snatching  the 
soldier  back  from  the  jaws  of  death,  and  so,  four 
days  later,  he  awaited  the  advent  of  the  two  jour- 
nalistic friends. 

The  first  excursion  was  to  be  a  brief  drive  in 
the  gardens  of  the  Villa  Borghese,  with  a  halt  at 
the  American  Club,  where  the  gathered  friends  of 
the  soldier  could  all  shake  his  hand. 

After  the  arrival  on  the  morrow  of  General 
Rufus  Hatcher,  the  question  of  removing  Landon 
for  a  radical  change  of  air  was  to  be  decided  in  a 
general  council. 


150  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

And  afl  went  merry  as  a  marriage  bell.  Lan- 
don,  upborne  by  the  strong  arms  of  his  friends, 
reached  the  carriage  in  safety.  For  two  hours 
he  drank  in  the  strong  fresh  air  of  the  woods,  and 
there  was  a  flush  on  his  cheek  as  the  carriage 
stopped  before  the  American  Gub. 

Then,  while  Frank  Hatton  betook  himself  to 
notify  the  waiting  friends  at  the  Eveless  Para- 
dise, Forrest  Grimes  watched  over  Landon, 
seated  in  a  little  refreshment  room,  slowly  sip- 
ping a  priceless  flask  of  Johannisberger. 

Suddenly  Grimes  sprang  up,  as  Sidney  Lan- 
don, pale  as  marble,  strode  to  the  door,  carelessly 
left  ajar,  of  the  next  private  guest  room. 

The  clear  pitiless  tones  of  Rawdon  Clark's 
voice  were  unmistakable. 

"Yes!  Poor  devil!  Murray  Raynor  died 
broken-hearted.  He  never  held  his  head  up  after 
a  brother  officer  first  stole  his  wife's  heart,  and 
then,  robbed  him  of  his  honor !  So  he  threw  his 
Kfe  away  under  the  Nez  Perce  rifles !" 

Grimes  held  his  breath,  in  horror  at  the  agony 
on  Landon's  face, — when  a  rough  voice  care- 
lessly queried,  "And,  what  became  of  the 


AT  THE  AMERICAN  CLUB.  Ill 

"Oh,  the  young  brute  cast  her  off  to  die  dis- 
graced and  broken-hearted,  while  he  sneaked  out 
into  another  regiment,  and  then  quickly  resigned 
to  escape  Raynor's  pistol!  I'm  told  he's  here  in 
Rome  now!" 

There  was  the  crash  of  overturned  chairs  as 
Sidney  Landon  dashed  into  the  room! 

Throwing  his  wine,  glass  and  all,  into  the  face 
of  the  millionaire,  he  cried — "Dirty,  lying 
hound!" 

Forrest  Grimes  sprang  between  the;  two  men 
as  Rawdon  Clark  yelled,  "I  will  have  his  heart's 
biood  for  this !" 

The  veteran  journalist's  face  was  sternly  set 
as  he  smote  Clark's  cheek  with  his  open  palm. 
"Take  that,  you  slanderer!  My  friend  is  a  sick 
man.  But,  I  happen  to  be  a  dead  shot,  and  very 
much  at  your  service." 

Tossing  his  card  on  the  table,  Grimes  dragged 
Landon  from  the  room.  With  a  sign  to  Frank 
Hatton,  Grimes,  calling  the  dub  servants,  bore 
the  now  reeling  Landon  to  his  carriage. 

"Take  him  to  my  rooms,  Frank !"  he  cried.  "He 
must  not  go  back  to  Melvilles.  Here,  Danvers," 
he  entreated  of  a  friend,  "go  for  Doctor  Corvini 


152  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

and  bring  him  to  my  apartment!  Tell  him  that 
Landon  has  had  another  relapse."  For  the  sick 
man  was  now  wildly  raving. 

"What's  the  matter  here?"  sternly  demanded 
Royston,  the  pet  of  the  Eveless  Paradise,  as  Raw- 
don  Clark  and  his  companion  strode  out  of  their 
room.  "Only  a  sick  man's  petulant  quarrel!" 
gruffly  said  the  stranger,  as  he  dragged  the  furi- 
ous Clark  away. 

But  the  owner  of  the  Elkhorn  was  now  a  lion 
raging  in  his  loosened  wrath.  "I'll  have  my  re- 
venge!" he  yelled. 

"You  know  how  to  get  it,"  sternly  said  Forrest 
Grimes.  "If  you  want  it  now, — just  step  around 
to  the  shooting  gallery  with  me!" 

When  the  resolute  stranger  had  hauled  Clark 
away,  Forrest  Grimes  drew  his  startled  friends 
aside.  "Not  a  word  of  this, — upon  your  lives !  It 
might  ruin  helpless  ones  here !  I  will  look  out  for 
Mr.  Rawdon  Clark.  He  shall  not  be  balked  of  a 
fight!  Just  say  that  I  had  a  chance  row  with 
Clark,— that's  all!" 

Late  that  evening,  Doctor  Corvini  returned  to 
the  Palazzo  Vecchio,  where  he  held  a  council  of 
war  with  General  Hatcher  and  the  Melvilles. 


DIRTY,  LYING   HOUND  !  "  —  Page  150. 


AT  THE  AMERICAN  CLUB.  153 

The  tongue  of  wild  rumor  had  been  busy  and 
even  Agnes  Hawthorn  at  the  Costanzi  knew  of 
the  desperate  fracas  between  Grimes  and  Clark 
over  an  American  society  beauty.  And  all  could 
easily  guess  the  hidden  name.  The  whole  colony 
was  agog! 

But  General  Hatcher  only  shook  his  head  in 
hopeless  sorrow  when  Corvini  demanded  of  him 
the  history  of  Ethel,  the  unknown. 

"In  his  whole  illness  he  has  only  raved  of  this 
Ethel,  and — if  the  shadows  of  the  past  are  not 
lifted — this  poor  man  may  only  come  out  of  this 
relapse  into  the  death  in  life  of  insanity. 

"I  shall  put  only  professional  attendants  over 
him  now,  and  then,  when  he  can  bear  it,  send  him 
away  as  soon  as  possible.  He  can  not  be  moved 
again." 

Old  General  Hatcher's  eyes  were  dim  as  he 
said  to  Melville,  "I  shall  not  leave  Rome  till  this 
poor  boy's  fate  is  decided!  What  a  sudden  re- 
turn of  delirium!  I  will  take  up  my  quarters 
with  Grimes  to  be  near  him !" 

But  the  husband  and  wife,  not  altogether  de- 
ceived by  the  old  General's  repeated  denials,  only 
gazed  into  each  other's  eyes  when  alone,  saying, 


154  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"Who  is  this  Ethel  who  has  wrecked  his  life?  Is 
the  burden  of  the  story  one  of  sin  or  shame — this 
recurrent  history  of  the  past  ?" 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  INTELLIGENCE   BUREAU   AT  WORK. 

General  Rufus  Hatcher,  taking  a  vigorous 
command  of  the  situation  at  the  Eveless  Paradise, 
at  once  established  his  personal  headquarters  in  a 
suite  of  rooms  next  to  the  indefatigable  Forrest 
Grimes.  He  was  in  entire  ignorance  of  the  fracas 
which  had  led  to  the  relapse  of  the  man  now  most 
talked  about  in  Rome. 

While  the  startled  Arthur  Melville  dropped  his 
artistic  life  and  spasmodically  took  up  the  reins 
of  his  office  at  a  hint  from  Morgan,  the  evenings 
at  the  Palazzo  Vecchio  were  often  enlivened  by 
Hatton  and  Grimes'  visits. 

There  was  a  look  of  grim  determination  on 
Grimes'  face,  which  showed  a  settled  purpose. 
Beautiful  Gertrude  Melville's  eyes  blazed  with 
indignation  as  Grimes  recounted  to  her  his  most 


THE  BUREAU  AT  WORK.  155 

recent    social    discoveries.     For    the    two    were 
sworn  secret  allies  in  Sidney  Landon's  behalf. 

"There  is  a  persistent  flooding  of  Rome  going 
on,  with  a  tide  of  foul  stories  to  the  discredit  of 
this  poor  young  soldier,"  said  the  journalist.  "I 
hear  them  everywhere. 

"The  foreign  circles  here  are  agitated  over 
stories  that  Landon's  banditti  experience  was  a 
myth — that  he  wantonly  shot  the  unaimed  peas- 
ant to  cover  up  an  ugly  intrigue,  and  that  he  was 
disgracefully  forced  to  resign  from  the  United 
States  Army." 

"Are  any  names  coupled  with  his?"  said  Mrs. 
Melville — her  cheek  paling  as  she  bent  over  her 
embroidery. 

"Not  that  I  know  of,"  wrathfully  exclaimed 
the  writer,  "but,  neither  Hatton  nor  I  can  get  at 
the  whole  stories.  They  will  not  talk  before  us. 
Of  course,  Hatton  is  handicapped  with  his  imper- 
fect Italian,  but  I  have  dropped  in  on  several 
coteries  where  the  running  story  seemed  suddenly 
cut  off  by  my  appearance. 

"I  dare  not  confer  with  General  Hatcher  upon 
these  matters,  for  I  do  not  wish  the  rash  old  vet- 


156  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

eran  to  babble  to  Sidney  Landon,  as  he  surely 
would. 

"Doctor  Corvini  says  that  our  friend  must  be 
spared  all  excitement." 

"Whom  do  you  suspect  of  spreading  these 
rumors?"  asked  the  troubled  Melville. 

"I  know  of  no  one  with  whom  Captain  Landon 
has  had  a  quarrel.  Perhaps  they  are  circulated 
by  the  friends  of  some  aspirant  for  his  place." 

He  smiled  faintly  as  he  said,  "Many  ambitious 
American  residents  at  once  begin  to  intrigue  for 
diplomatic  or  consular  rank  here  as  soon  as  they 
strike  social  roots  into  this  fertile  ground. 

"Every  mail  carries  away  to  America  some 
furtive  and  scandalous  complaint  of  the  Legation 
or  Consulate  General  Officers.  I  only  answer 
the  Department  of  State  that  my  resignation 
awaits  the  slightest  intimation  of  the  President's 
wish  for  my  retirement !" 

"That's  the  safest  official  life  insurance," 
laughed  Hatton.  "I  did  at  first  suspect  Robert 
Brandon,  for  I  think  that  he  feels  that  your  family 
holds  aloof  from  his  picture  jobbing  salons,  but 
even  the  closest  watch  has  not  caught  him  nap- 
ping as  yet. 


THE  BUREAU  AT  WORK.  157 

"And,  then,  there's  this  flamboyant  mining  mil- 
lionaire, Rawdon  Clark!  I  wonder  if  the  two 
men  ever  met  out  west ;  but  Clark  is  far  too  pru- 
dent to  betray  himself !" 

Mrs.  Melville  dropped  her  eyes  and  walked 
away  to  hide  conscious  blushes. 

Her  own  womanly  intuitions  told  her  of  the 
veiled  antipathy  of  the  Crcesus.  She  alone  knew 
of  the  daily  creeping  nigher  of  Clark's  proprie- 
tary lines  about  the  orphaned  heiress. 

"It  must  be  some  mysterious  hostile  influence," 
she  said.  "Charley  Hollingsworth  has  been  liv- 
ing here  nearly  twenty  years.  His  cherubs  are 
real  Romans,  'to  the  manner  born/  and  he  sent 
his  wife  down  yesterday  to  tell  me  the  Italian  and 
French  clubs  are  filled  with  the  vilest  scandals 
against  the  poor  Captain. 

"Now,  Hollingsworth  has  grown  into  the  very 
core  of  the  Italian  life  here,  and  he  thinks  that  the 
active  agents  are  local  foreigners — whoever  the 
veiled  principals  may  be. 

"He  fears  that  Captain  Landon  may  be  en- 
trapped in  a  quarrel, — or  forced  into  a  duel  with 
some  of  these  matchless  swordsmen  and  then — 
killed  while  yet  weak!" 


158  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

"I  will  take  care  of  that!"  grimly  replied  For- 
rest Grimes.  "He  shall  fight  no  one  in  Rome  if 
I  can  prevent  it." 

The  brave  fellow  had  locked  up  in  his  own  gal- 
lant heart  the  details  of  the  fracas  between  Lan- 
don  and  Clark.  "Thank  God,  no  one  overheard 
that  row,"  he  mused.  "Landon  seemed  to  catch 
Clark's  meaning  instantly !  He  certainly  will  not 
talk !  And  they  dare  not!" 

Grimes  smiled  as  he  remembered  Mr.  Burton 
Wilmot's  baffled  rage  as  Clark's  confidant  and 
friend  had  approached  him  on  the  next  day  after 
the  trouble  with  a  pompous  challenge  for  Landon, 
addressed  to  him  as  the  second  of  the  sick  man. 

"See  here,  Mr.  Wilmot,"  Grimes  had  sharply 
answered.  "I  shall  not,  at  any  time,  deliver  your 
cartel  to  Captain  Landon. 

"You,  as  the  bearer  of  it,  know  the  man  is  rav- 
ing helplessly  in  the  delirium  of  a  relapse  of 
fever. 

"Now,  Landon  only  threw  wine  at  your  friend 
Clark,  while  /  struck  him!  I  accept  the  whole  re- 
sponsibility for  both  insults!  You,  as  a  respon- 
sible second,  are  a  coward  to  push  a  challenge  at 
a  bed-ridden  man!  I  will,  however,  accommo- 


THE  BUREAU  AT  WORK.  159 

date  you!  I  will  send  for  my  friend,  Mr.  Charles 
Hollingsworth.  We  will  follow  you  and  Clark 
out  of  Rome.  /  insist  on  fighting  him,  first! 

"If  he  does  not  challenge  me  now — within 
twenty-four  hours, — I  will  have  the  right  to  re- 
fuse any  future  cartel,  and  also  to  post  him  as  a 
coward. 

"As  to  you,  I  take  the  place  of  my  principal.  I 
will  cheerfully  go  out  with  you  and  show  you 
that  I  can  hit  a  five-cent  piece  nine  times  out  of 
ten  at  ten  paces!  After  that  exhibition,  if  you 
wish  to  take  Clark's  place, — try  me  on,  as  Lan- 
don's  representative. 

"In  any  case,  if  either  of  you  breathes  any  slan- 
ders against  that  dead  woman,  or  tries  to  vilify 
Landon,  while  sick,  I  will  publicly  horsewhip 
both  of  you !" 

And,  then — a  week  had  gone  by  in  silence, 
Grimes  easily  learning  that  Burton  Wilmot  had 
left  Rome  for  America,  "recalled  by  sudden  busi- 
ness." 

"No,"  he  mused.  "It  can  not  be  Clark!  He 
would  not  dare.  For  he  has  too  much  to  lose — 
to  face  a  pistol." 

The  journalist  was  firm  in  this  belief,  for  in  all 


160  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

the  rumors  the  occurrence  at  the  American  Club 
had  been  strictly  ignored. 

Not  even  the  honest-hearted  Hatton  had  an 
idea  of  the  scene  which  took  place  in  the  little  pri- 
vate room. 

So,  when  Forrest  Grimes  said,  with  a  sigh, 
"We  must  leave  it  all  for  General  Hatcher  to 
fathom,"  the  little  coterie  agreed. 

"Certainly,  the  General  is  the  only  one  to 
whom  Captain  Landon  could  properly  unveil 
himself,"  thoughtfully  remarked  Mrs.  Melville, 
"but  all  these  slanderers  will  be  careful  to  shun 
General  Hatcher.  He  will  not  hear  the  damag- 
ing slanders,  and  then — if  he  goes  away  unin- 
formed— as  Captain  Landon  is  himself  ignorant 
of  all,  we  leave  our  friend  entirely  helpless." 

Her  clear  eyes  met  Grimes'  steady  gaze. 

"You  are  the  only  man,  Mr.  Grimes,  who  can 
frankly  tell  the  General  all,  for  my  husband's  offi- 
cial position  would  prevent  him  so  doing. 

"Then,  before  the  General's  final  departure, 
you  and  he  can  decide  how  much  Captain  Landon 
shall  know;  afterwards — Arthur  can  follow  up 
all  these  matters  and  meet  them  at  the  Depart- 


THE  BUREAU  AT  WORK.  161 

ment,  for  there,  I  apprehend,  is  the  place  where 
the  poison  is  intended  to  injure  him." 

While  the  anxious  friends  reviewed  the  situa- 
tion, at  the  Hotel  Quirinale,  Rawdon  Clark  con- 
ferred with  his  now  crafty  master,  the  secretly 
jubilant  Maspero. 

"Mark  you,  my  man,"  he  curtly  said,  "this 
thing  may  come  to  an  open  issue  in  two  or  three 
months,  at  longest. 

"You  now  understand  all  my  wishes.  This  old 
fool,  Mrs.  Montgomery,  is  going  home  in  a  few 
weeks.  She  has  been  frightened  away  by  the 
stories  about  the  Via  Appia  affair. 

"Your  friends  in  the  Clubs  have  done  their 
work  well !  We  will  have  her  soon  off  our  hands ! 

"Then,  all  that  I  ask  of  these  women,  Emilia 
and  Lucia,  is  to  meet  my  friend,  Mrs.  Bran- 
don, and  to  tell  her  the  whole  truth — that  Miss 
Hawthorn  was  with  Landon  when  the  shooting 
occurred.  That  is  all  I  wish  Mrs.  Brandon  to 
know. 

"As  for  the  two  vetturini,  they  can,  later,  tell 
their  story  to  Mr.  Brandon  in  my  presence. 

"I  shall  have  my  revenge  on  this  young  fool; 

you  will  have  him  out  of  the  way ;  and  he  will  fail 
11 


162  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

in  his  chase  of  the  heiress.  That  will  soon  drive 
him  out  of  Rome !" 

Maspero's  glittering  black  eyes  rested  hungi  ily 
on  Clark's  face.  "The  people  are  to  be  kept 
apart?"  he  demanded. 

"Of  course,  of  course,"  hastily  answered  Clark. 

"And  to  be  paid  separately — paid  well  for  their 
work?" 

"You  know  how  I  pay,  you  dog!"  angrily  cried 
Clark,  rising  in  wrath. 

"Basta!  Count  on  me!"  growled  Maspero. 
"The  thing  is  done." 

He  folded  up  a  roll  of  notes  as  Clark  rapidly 
strode  away.  "How  he  hates  that  Captain !  What 
a  gold  mine  to  me!  What  a  fool! 

"And  all  for  a  woman  who  has  to  be  trapped  to 
get  her!  Corpo  di  Bacco!  He  will  have  a  fine 
time  to  keep  such  a  sly  bird!  Fool!  when  our 
ruby-hearted  Italian  women  are  here — white 
bosomed  and  open  armed — waiting  for  the 
shower  of  gold !  Such  a  Jupiter  could  choose  his 
Danae  here  among  the  proudest !" 

But  late  that  night  Rawdon  Clark  labored  in 
his  splendid  apartment  over  the  "Intelligence 
Bureau." 


THE  BUREAU  AT  WORK.  163 

"I  must  work  quickly,"  he  resolved.  "Already 
Agnes  Hawthorn  shows  a  restlessness!  She 
wishes  to  leave!  Thank  Heavens,  she  will  wait 
until  disembarrassed  of  this  old  Mrs.  Montgom- 
ery! That  leaves  me  a  clear  field!  Then,  with 
Myra  Brandon  ready  to  work  upon  her  pride, 
with  the  old  army  scandal,  with  both  Myra  and 
her  husband  to  arouse  her  fears  in  this  Via  Appia 
embroglio,  it  only  leaves  her  the  choice  to  give  up 
Landon,  or  else, — lose  her  reputation!  I  am 
safe!  Agnes  Hawthorn  will  never  dare  to  dis- 
close her  relatives'  confidential  warnings  !"• 

After  several  attempts,  the  revengeful  capital- 
ist succeeded  in  producing  the  draft  of  a  letter  to 
be  addressed  simply  "My  Dear  Friend." 

This  carefully  drawn  document  was  to  bear  the 
signature  of  Mrs.  Dora  Prindle, — and  to  be  for- 
warded to  the  hostile  wife  of  "Black  Bill"  for  her 
personal  signature. 

Clark  leaned  back  and  lit  a  cigar,  dreaming  of 
his  future  Philadelphian  glories. 

"Yes!"  he  mused.  "This  will  work.  The 
story  is  well  and  yet  vaguely  told.  The  envelope 
is  to  be  addressed  directly  to  Mrs.  Myra  Bran- 


164  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

don,  who  is  not  named  in  the  body  of  the  letter." 
He  read  a  clause  or  two  with  delight. 

"I  have  learned  through  Mr.  Burton  Wilmot 
of  the  possibility  of  an  engagement  between  your 
beautiful  niece,  Miss  Hawthorn,  and  an  un- 
worthy man,  formerly  of  our  Regiment,  a  trick- 
ster, and  one  whose  social  misdeeds  drove  him 
out  of  the  army." 

The  capitalist  read  over  and  over  Barker  Bol- 
ton's  explanation  of  Mrs.  Prindle's  hatred  of 
Landon. 

In  the  inevitable  opposing  cliques  of  regimental 
life,  poor  Landon  had  loyally  held  to  the  side  of 
Colonel  and  Mrs.  Atwater. 

It  seemed  but  natural  that  Lieutenant  Colonel 
Prindle  should  hate  the  man  who  on  the  one  step 
above  debarred  him  from  active  regimental  com- 
mand, and  his  wife  from  queening  it  over  the 
forty-seven  regimental  officers. 

A  little  social  frontier  maneuver  which  had 
failed,  the  importation  of  Mrs.  Prindle's  dashing 
unmarried  sister,  with  a  set  purpose  of  marrying 
her  off  to  Sidney  Landon,  the  eligible  social  star, 
was  another  cause  of  deadly  personal  hatred. 


THE  BUREAU  AT  WORK.  165 

The  fish  did  not  bite,  and  both  sisters  hated  Lan- 
don with  a  due  acerbity. 

Barker  Bolton  had  written  that  Mrs.  Prindle 
had  been  loud  in  accusation  of  the  man  who  had 
"skipped  his  regiment,"  and  now  grimly  pointed 
to  Major  Murray  Raynor's  reckless  death  in  the 
fierce  Nez  Perce  fight. 

"I  am  ready  to  begin  my  campaign,"  mused 
Clark,  "as  soon  as  Mrs.  Montgomery  leaves.  Old 
General  Hatcher  will  be  very  soon  out  of  the  way. 
Brandon  can  use  Bolton's  letter  to  arouse  his 
wife's  aversion  of  Landon  and  kindle  it  to  a  bitter 
hatred ! 

"Landon,  the  young  fool,  has  ignored  the 
Brandons  here,  worshiping  at  the  shrine  of  that 
finicky  social  lay  figure,  Mrs.  Melville. 

"Maspero's  information  can  be  divided  up, — 
the  women  going  to  Mrs.  Brandon,  and  the  coach- 
men confessing  to  her  husband.  All  this  will 
frighten  Agnes  Hawthorn  away  from  Rome. 
Landon  is  poor  and  tied  down  here.  He  can  not 
afford  to  follow  her!  I  can,  and  Mrs.  Brandon 
can  later  chase  on  after  the  girl,  as  my  secret 
guest  and  agent.  And,  so — I  will  be  in  at  the 
finale,  'a  sure  winner,  the  last  in  the  race !' ' 


166  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

Two  weeks  later,  General  Rufus  Hatcher 
judged  Sidney  Landon  to  be  well  enough  to  be- 
gin the  main  business  of  his  Roman  visit. 

He  had  now  fortified  himself  with  a  letter  from 
Colonel  and  Mrs.  Atwater,  whose  leave  was  put 
over  to  the  next  season,  by  virtue  of  certain  spo- 
radic Indian  raids  calling  for  the  immediate 
handling  of  the  veteran  Chief. 

Loyal  Forrest  Grimes,  loth  to  enter  into  un- 
pleasantness, was  watching  his  chance  to  confer 
with  the  General  upon  the  continually  rising  tide 
of  scandal  involving  both  Landon's  past  and  pres- 
ent. 

With  all  the  watchful  loyalty  of  Hatton  and 
Grimes — no  straw  as  yet  pointed  to  either  Clark 
or  the  Brandon  faction  as  in  any  way  responsible 
for  the  wriggling  scandals. 

"By  Jove!"  growled  Grimes.  "I  believe  that 
the  best  thing  for  Landon  to  do  would  be  to  apply 
for  a  transfer  to  Vienna  or  Paris,  or  to  some 
other  continental  station.  There  is  a  fatal  under- 
tow pulling  against  him  here. 

"Why,  even  Charley  Hollingsworth  tells  me 
that  the  Melvilles  and  Miss  Hawthorn  have  heard 


THE  BUREAU  AT  WORK.  167 

many  of  these  disgraceful  stories,  and  they  are 
becoming,  to  say  the  least,  uneasy. 

"I'll  wait  for  another  week.  Landon  is  now 
gaining  rapidly,  and  I  will  then  bring  things  to  a 
head  before  General  Hatcher  leaves  for  home. 
He  can,  at  least,  send  on  from  the  War  Depart- 
ment such  authoritative  letters  as  will  scotch  the 
snake." 

It  was  a  pleasant  spring  afternoon,  and  Gen- 
eral Hatcher  had  left  Sidney  Landon  pleasantly 
sleeping,  when  he  stole  away  to  bring  up  all  the 
arrears  of  his  correspondence. 

He  sighed  as  he  contemplated  convoying  home 
the  faded  Mrs.  Montgomery,  but  who  could  re- 
sist that  most  fascinating  of  invalids,  Miss  Haw- 
thorn, the  only  woman  who  had  ever  invested 
crutches  with  piquancy  and  grace? 

General  Hatcher  pushed  back  his  spectacles 
and  dropped  his  big  cane  penholder  with  an  impa- 
tient snort,  when  the  butler  brought  him  the  card 
of  "Mr.  Charles  Hollingsworth."  Upon  the 
turned-down  corner  was  penciled  "Very  import- 
ant." 

"What  the  devil" — began  Hatcher,  but  his  so- 
liloquy was  cut  off  by  the  entrance  of  the  head- 


168  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

long  Hollingsworth,  with  the  light  of  battle  in  his 
eyes.  "You  must  excuse  me  breaking  in  on  you, 
General,"  he  began,  "but  in  an  affair  involving 
Landon's  honor  I  could  not  wait !" 

"Speak  out,"  hastily  cried  Hatcher.  "What's 
up  now?" 

He  pointed  to  a  seat  and  pushed  over  his  cigar 
box.  "They  are  the  most  lightly  damned  of  all  the 
cigars  I  could  find  in  Rome !  Now,  sir!" 

The  undaunted  Hollingsworth  came  to  the 
point  at  once. 

"You  are  the  oldest  friend,  I  apprehend,  of 
Sidney  Landon,  and  the  only  army  officer  of 
rank  now  in  Italy!  I  come  to  you  to  aid  me  in 
solving  a  mystery  which  is  taken  advantage  of  by 
Landon's  enemies  to  work  his  social  ruin." 

"What's  your  mystery?"  roared  the  old  vet- 
eran. 

"Why  did  Captain  Landon  suddenly  throw  up 
his  command — leave  his  regiment,  transfer,  and, 
then — suddenly  quit '  the  army  ?"  gravely  asked 
the  visitor. 

"What's  that  to  you?"  fiercely  demanded 
Hatcher.  Charley  Hollingsworth  kept  his  tem- 
per admirably. 


THE  BUREAU  AT  WORK.  169 

"A  great  deal,  General,"  he  quietly  answered, 
"to  Landon,  himself,  to  you — and,  to  all  his  real 
friends  here! 

"Just  before  his  illness  came  on,  I  put  his  name 
up  at  the  Cercle  de  Rome. 

"The  Marquis  de  Pallavinci,  a  good  fellow, 
signed  as  sponsor  with  me,  at  my  especial  re- 
quest. I  was  astonished  that  the  election  after 
the  four  weeks'  wait,  was  put  off  through  January 
and  February. 

"Here  we  are  at  March  first,  and  the  season 
already  beginning  to  wane. 

"To  my  horror  and  surprise,  I  received  this 
morning  the  official  notification  that  Captain  Sid- 
ney Landon  had  been  heavily  blackballed  and  re- 
jected." 

General  Hatcher  sprang  up,  his  face  reddened 
with  wrath.  "The  damned  Italian  curs!"  he 
cried.  "When  a  man  is  in  the  jaws  of  death  to 
so  openly  insult  him !" 

Hollingsworth's  voice  was  sorrowful  in  tone 
as  he  mechanically  continued : 

"Now — I  started  this  morning  to  look  up  Pal- 
lavinci, for  I  was  not  at  the  election. 

"I  met  him  on  his  way  to  my  house,  and  he  was 


170  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

fierce  in  a  white  heat.  There  was  simply  a  storm 
of  black  balls. 

"Now,  Pallavinci  happens  to  be  a  high-spirited 
fellow,  a  man  of  sterling  honor,  and  he  wants  to 
go  in,  at  once,  and  fight  the  whole  damned  club! 
It  appears  he  has  forced  out  of  some  of  these  fel- 
lows the  stories  which  have  worked  this  wrong. 

"He  will  not  tell  me,  for  he  is  afraid  that  I  will 
go  and  get  a  rapier  through  me  in  championing 
Landon. 

"He  reminded  me  of  my  duty  to  Elaine  and  my 
frolicsome  'cherubs.' 

"But  the  insult  to  the  United  States  is  a  flat 
one !  This  poor  boy  Landon  is  our  Vice  Consul 
General,  as  well  as  a  representative  of  the  army. 
Our  Secretaries  of  Legation  are  all  members  of 
the  Club !  There'll  be  blood  shed  sure ! 

"For  Pallavinci  said,  'I  am  a  bachelor!  You 
and  I  have  been  insulted  as  sponsors, — I  have  no 
ties,  I  am  a  Roman,  and — they  insult  Roman  hos- 
pitality through  me.  Find  out  the  truth,  and  I 
will  try  my  hand  on  one  or  two  of  them.' 

"So  there  is  the  whole  story!  I  shall  not  go 
into  the  club  again,  save  with  Pallavinci,  and — 
if  he  fights,  why—/  do,— that's  all." 


THE  BUREAU  AT  WORK.  171 

The  two  men  gazed  blankly  in  each  other's 
eyes,  while  Rufus  Hatcher  swore  an  old-time 
Army  of  the  Cumberland  oath, — as  long  as  an 
army  mule  train. 

"Does  anyone  else  know  anything  of  this?" 
the  General  growled. 

"I  fancy  that  Forrest  Grimes  can  enlighten 
you,"  sadly  said  Hollingsworth.  "He  is  a  man 
of  the  world,  of  our  own  world.  Melville  is  an 
artistic  dreamer  in  his  little  home  Paradise,  while 
Frank  Hatton  is  an  unsuspecting  simple-hearted 
manly  Christian!  I  thought  that  Grimes  had 
told  you  of  this  trouble,  before!" 

"See  here,  Hollingsworth,"  the  old  veteran 
said,  with  a  husky  voice.  "You  are  a  game  and 
loyal  gentleman.  I  will  go  deeply  into  this  for 
the  honor  of  the  army! 

"I  will  see  Grimes  myself  before  dark,  and, 
leaving  the  club  matter  out,  will  soon  gain  all  he 
knows. 

"To-night,  I'll  go  into  the  subject  with  Sidney 
Landon.  In  the  meantime,  promise  me  to  keep 
Pallavinci  away  from  the  Club! 

"I  will  meet  him  at  your  house  at  breakfast 
to-morrow!  And, — let  there  be  no  fire-eating 


CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

on  your  part,  sir !  You  have  a  charming  family ! 
I  am  a  lonely  old  oak!  It  makes  no  difference 
where  I  fall!  I  will  look  out  for  the  honor  of 
the  Army!" 

The  two  men  separated  with  that  convulsive 
grip  of  the  hands  which  speaks  more  than  the 
vain  jingle  of  words  with  true-hearted  men. 

Hollingsworth's  graceful  form  had  no  sooner 
disappeared  than  General  Hatcher  sought  out 
Forrest  Grimes,  who  was  seated  in  the  midst 
of  a  pyramid  of  sheets,  his  weekly  syndicated 
review  of  "Roba  di  Roma." 

For  three  long  hours  the  two  friends  conferred, 
and  then  the  story  of  the  mysterious  flood  tide 
of  gossip  was  given  in  all  its  details  to  the  now 
maddened  veteran. 

Forrest  Grimes,  pacing  his  floor,  with  his  old 
mahogany-colored  cutty  pipe  in  his  teeth,  grimly 
said,  "And,  as  an  additional  humiliation,  Mr. 
Rawdon  Clark  was  duly  elected  a  member  of  the 
Corde  de  Rome  at  this  same  balloting.  I  know 
that  he's  a  cad,  but  I  will  stake  my  soul  that 
there  was  no  hand  of  his  in  this!" 

Something  in  Grimes'  voice  betrayed  his  hid- 
den knowledge  of  the  fracas! 


THE  BUREAU  AT  WORK.  173 

"Are  you  holding  anything  back,  Grimes?" 
eagerly  demanded  the  General.  And  then  the 
game  fellow  quietly  said: 

"Nothing  that  anyone  has  a  right  to  know! 
You  must  let  Sidney  Landon  enlighten  you!" 

That  evening,  before  General  Hatcher  opened 
his  batteries  upon  Landon,  he  re-read  the  letter 
of  Colonel  Miles  Atwater  and  the  gallant  hearted 
Mrs.  Mary.  He  sighed  as  he  read  the  lines, 
"Even  if  you  can  not  persuade  Landon  to  re- 
main in  the  army  he  should  re-enter  it,  serve  a 
couple  of  years,  and  then  go  out  in  due  form. 

"I  cannot  reach  all  the  low  gossip  here, — but, 
his  sudden  transfer,  his  hasty  resignation  after- 
wards and  his  leaving  the  country,  have  been 
made  the  basis  of  dark  rumors.  Of  course,  these, 
in  their  worst  form,  are  kept  away  from  us! 
Make  Landon,  at  least,  unbosom  himself!  His 
new  regiment  went  into  a  hot  campaign  just  as 
he  left,  and — yet, — I'll  swear  there  is  no  white 
feather  in  Landon!" 

With  a  confidence  born  of  his  own  high  bred 
sense  of  honor,  General  Hatcher,  that  night, 
seated  by  Landon's  bed,  cautiously  approached 
the  tender  subject.  He  sheltered  his  real  purpose 


CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

behind  the  generous  offer  of  the  President  to 
reappoint  Captain  Landon  upon  the  staff,  and 
later  retransfer  him  to  the  line,  and  the  old  be- 
loved "Grays." 

The  old  General's  face  was  hidden  behind  the 
green  lampshade  under  which  the  yellow  gleams 
lit  up  Sidney  Landon's  wasted  face,  with  its 
straggling  beard  of  the  sick  room.  The  young 
soldier's  face  was  keenly  scanned  by  the  speaker, 
who  noted  the  nervous  twitching  of  the  sick 
man's  thinned  hands. 

Driven  on  by  his  own  earnestness,  the  General 
became  slowly  irritated  by  the  negative  attitude 
of  the  listener. 

There  was  an  evasiveness  in  Landon's  manner 
which  was  foreign  to  the  man  of  old,  the  man  of 
whom  a  Commanding  General  had  once  said, 
"There's  a  soldier!  See  young  Landon  take  his 
troop  into  action!  He  will  go  up  to  the  stars 
yet!" 

General  Hatcher  paused  when  he  had  fired  off 
his  official  ammunition,  and  tossed  his  head  in 
surprise  as  he  saw  Sidney  Landon  slowly  shake 
his  head. 

There  were  tears  stealing  out  under  the  young 


THE  BUREAU  AT  WORK.  175 

soldier's  closed  eyelids,  but  his  lips  merely  moved 
in  whispers. 

General  Hatcher's  heart  melted  as  he  drew  out 
the  letters  of  the  Colonel  and  his  beloved  wife! 

He  read  recklessly  on  until  he  was  checked  by 
the  tell-tale  finishing  clauses.  Sidney  Landon 
feebly  turned  his  eyes  to  the  old  General's  face. 

"It  is  impossible,"  he  said.  "I  can  not  re-enter 
the  army.  You  can  thank  the  President  for  his 
kindly  consideration !  By  and  by,  I  will  write  to 
the  Atwaters." 

And  then — all  General  Hatcher's  solicitude  for 
Landon's  honor  thrilled  in  his  voice,  as  he 
pleaded :  "Sidney !  I  am  an  old  and  broken  man ! 
I  have  neither  wife  nor  child!  You  would  have 
been  the  son  of  my  heart !  Tell  me,  at  least,  that 
you  will  consider  this  for  three  months!  You 
are  weak  and  broken  now!" 

The  sufferer  turned  his  head  away. 

"Not  for  a  single  moment!"  he  whispered. 
"When  I  rode  past  the  Regimental  flag  of  the 
Grays,  it  was  for  the  last  time !" 

"Then,  by  Heaven,  you  shall  tell  me  why  you 
left  the  army?"  the  General  eagerly  prayed. 


176  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"For  the  sake  of  the  Regiment,  for  my  sake, 
for  your  oivn  sake,  Sidney,  tell  me! 

"You  are  a  young  man,  you  have  much  to 
learn!  Let  me  beg  you,  before  I  leave, — that  I 
shall  know!" 

The  General  started  up,  as  Captain  Landon 
answered,  his  voice  almost  sinking  into  a  hollow 
groan : 

"My  past  life  is  a  sealed  book, — there  are  two 
graves  now  hiding  what  you  would  know, — and, 
— for  good  or  ill,  I  shall  go  on  silently  to  the  end, 
— for  the  past  is  voiceless!" 

The  old  General  grasped  the  sufferer's  hand. 

"My  God!  Boy!  You  do  not  know  what  you 
say!  Tell  me!  In  your  sickness  you  have  raved 
incessantly  of  Ethel!  Who  is  this  Ethel!" 

Landon's  voice  rose  almost  to  a  shriek. 

"Her  very  memory  is  too  sacred  for  my  lips  to 
profane!  Let  them  say  what  they  will!  I  will 
be  silent!  I  am  forced  to  be  silent!" 

"And,  so — let  disgrace  fall  upon  you?"  sharply 
cried  the  General.  Landon  turned  his  face  to  the 
wall  with  a  sigh. 

General  Rufus  Hatcher  summoned  the  attend- 
ants and  left  the  room  without  another  word. 


BEHIND  CLOSED  DOORS.  177 

"Can  it  be  true?"  he  muttered;  but  he  choked 
off  the  unbidden  suspicion. 

General  Rufus  Hatcher's  face  was  very  grave 
as  he  reported  at  Hollingsworth's  home,  the  next 
day,  a  half  hour  before  Pallavinci's  arrival. 

Drawing  his  host  aside,  he  sadly  said :  "You 
must  not  let  Pallavinci  fight!  As  for  yourself, — 
as  my  countryman, — I  bid  you  to  guard  your  own 
home. 

"There  is  some  ugly  mystery  here!  I  shall 
leave  Rome  as  soon  as  I  can — and, — advise  Lan- 
don  to  do  the  same! 

"For  he  has  locked  his  lips — in  a  stubborn 
folly!" 

"And  his  reputation?"  said  Hollingsworth. 

"He  must  guard  that  for  himself,  as  best  he 
can!"  sadly  said  the  old  man. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

BEHIND  CLOSED  DOORS. 

The  week  which  followed  Captain  Landon's 
club  blackballing  was  one  of  many  fiercely 
foughten  social  battles  in  Rome,  and  many 

12 


178  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

society  vehme-gerichts  were  held  behind  closed 
doors. 

The  subject  of  all  this  bitter  wrangling  was 
now  hobbling  around  the  Eveless  Paradise,  and 
faithfully  attended  by  the  golden-hearted  Hatton. 

Captain  Landon's  gloomy  face  brought  no 
brightness  to  the  joyous  circle  of  the  gathered 
good  men  and  true. 

He  even  met  the  unwearying  General  Hatcher, 
with  a  slight  constraint,  tacitly  acknowledged  by 
both,  for,  either  Hatton  or  Grimes  always  seemed 
now  to  singularly  happen  in  upon  their  meeting 
hours. 

And  Forrest  Grimes'  face  was  soberly  over- 
cast, for  in  vain  he  had  essayed  to  plead  with 
the  young  fever  patient  to  reconsider  his  refusal 
to  re-enter  the  army. 

In  a  conference  with  General  Hatcher,  Grimes 
had  agreed  to  push  the  matter  on,  but  only  on  the 
basis  of  the  favorable  career  reopened  to  the 
soldier. 

Forrest  Grimes  resolutely  refused  to  touch 
upon  the  scandals,  or  upon  the  matter  of  the 
emphatic  blackballing  of  a  high  United  States 
official. 


BEHIND  CLOSED   DOORS.  179 

"Either  you  or  Melville  must  deal  with  that," 
resolutely  said  Grimes.  "You  two  men  represent 
the  War  and  State  Departments!  I  will  stand 
by  Sidney  Landon,  but  he  must  'dree  his  own 
weird.'  " 

Landon  himself  was  astonished  at  the  number 
of  cartes  de  visite  showered  in  upon  him,  pro 
forma ! 

In  his  ignorance  of  the  social  battle,  he  fool- 
ishly ascribed  these  visits  to  a  general  solicitude. 
As  the  Doctor  still  forbade  his  receiving  guests, 
he  was  guarded  by  the  happy  chance  from  any 
unlucky  disclosure. 

Forrest  Grimes,  though  revolving  through  all 
the  polyglot  circles  of  Roman  society,  could  not, 
even  with  his  keenest  sagacity,  touch  upon  the 
hidden  machinery  of  this  sudden  social  crusade. 

In  fact,  he  had  even  acquitted,  in  his  mind, 
Rawdon  Clark,  who  was  now  giving  breakfasts 
and  dinners,  ad  libitum,  to  the  Roman  aristocracy 
at  the  forbidden  ground  of  the  Cercle  de  Rome. 

With  all  the  finesse  of  a  cautious  enemy, 
Grimes  caused  Landon's  name  to  be  brought  up 
again  and  again  before  Clark,  by  his  own  Italian 
loyal-hearted  brothers. 


180  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

The  cautious  plotter  merely  spoke  gravely  of 
the  Captain's  serious  illness,  or  referred  to  the 
attacks  on  his  past  army  record  or  official  be- 
havior in  his  present  place  with  no  prejudice. 

Rawdon  Clark  was,  however,  laughing  in  his 
sleeve.  "It's  the  quiet  poison  that  does  the  deadly 
work,"  he  smilingly  resolved,  and  yet,  his  masked 
batteries  were  all  now  regularly  in  action. 

Jacopo  Maspero,  a  past  master  of  cowardly 
duplicity,  had  taken  the  "unfortunate  occurrence" 
in  commission.  There  was  no  gossipy  circle  in 
Rome  which  did  not  have  its  busy  chronique 
scandaleuse  in  which  the  previous  slanders  were 
nailed  down  with  this  public  disgrace.  For  the 
Italian  was  earning  his  vile  money — the  gage  of 
dishonor. 

While  a  saddened  coterie  secretly  met  at 
Arthur  Melville's  drawing  room  to  sigh  over  the 
growth  of  the  rising  storm, — Landon  was  all  un- 
conscious that  his  chief,  and  Grimes,  General 
Hatcher  and  Hatton,  even  the  optimistic  Hol- 
lingsworth  were  forced  to  agree  that  Landon 
stubbornly  would  not  explain  his  abrupt  exit  from 
the  army,  and, — that  there  was  no  one  else  who 
dared  to  leap  into  the  daily  widening  breach. 


BEHIND  CLOSED   DOORS.  181 

It  was  far  otherwise  with  Gertrude  Melville 
and  Elaine  Hollingsworth. 

With  all  the  fond  ardor  of  womanhood,  they 
adhered  to  the  fixed  idea  of  some  coming  sun- 
burst of  explanation  which  would  clear  away  all 
the  black  clouds  lowering  over  the  romantic 
young  official. 

These  were  halcyon  days  for  Mrs.  Myra  Bran- 
don! With  an  exquisite  skill,  she  slyly  rallied 
at  the  Art  Bungalow  all  the  acrid-tongued  ene- 
mies of  the  Melville  regime.  The  burly  form  of 
Brandon  bobbed  around  from  the  American  Club 
to  the  English  Library, — from  artists'  guilds  to 
villa  coteries — and  all  the  details  of  Sidney  Lan- 
don's  social  disgrace  were  thus  artfully  sowed 
broadcast. 

It  was  with  a  fine  application  of  the  cowardly 
art  of  backbiting  that  Myra  Brandon  made  the 
timid  Mrs.  Montgomery  the  vehicle  of  carrying 
all  these  oft-repeated  slanders  to  Agnes  Haw- 
thorn, now  eagerly  craving  to  leave  Rome,  and 
so  to  avoid  the  possibility  of  her  name  being 
coupled  with  the  unfortunate  Landon.  The 
lonely  girl  dared  not  confide  her  secret  fears  to 
any  one. 


182  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Mrs.  Montgomery,  deep  in  the  mystery  of 
marking  her  boxes,  timidly  crooned  over  the  dan- 
ger of  the  Via  Appian  adventure  becoming 
public. 

"It  would  be  your  social  ruin,  my  own  precious 
darling.  To  think  that  this  young  man  should 
turn  out  to  be  such  a  character." 

And  floods  of  tears  accentuated  her  forebod- 
ings. 

A  personal  timidity,  now  amounting  to  fear, 
forbade  the  lonely  heiress  from  confiding  this 
news  to  Mrs.  Melville  and  the  loyal  Elaine  Hoi- 
lings  worth. 

For,  Mrs.  Brandon,  a  daily  visitor,  artfully 
brought  those  who,  by  their  own  tongues,  con- 
firmed the  very  worst  of  the  floating  rumors. 

And,  at  last,  pushed  on  by  an  overweening 
anxiety,  the  orphan  girl  questioned  Rawdon 
Clark,  whose  unflagging  attentions  had  given 
him  the  right  to  an  almost  daily  admittance  at 
the  Costanzi.  He  seemed  to  be  now  Rome's  fore- 
most American  citizen, — and  decidedly  the  vogue 
— everywhere. 

The  capitalist  was  armed  and  ready  for  this 
welcome  sign  of  a  growing  confidence. 


BEHIND  CLOSED  DOORS.  183 

"My  dear  Miss  Hawthorn,"  he  sadly  said.  "I 
never  repeat  boudoir  gossip  nor  club  scandals! 
The  young  man  is  certainly  most  unfortunate, — 
to  say  the  least, — and,  more  I  can  not  tell  you ! 

"In  your  place, — I  should  confide  alone  in  your 
worthy  relative,  Mrs.  Brandon.  She  has  a  vast 
social  experience.  It  would  seem  that  the  intimate 
acquaintance  of  Captain  Landon  is  not  desirable, 
— but, — after  all,  he  is  a  mere  minor  official,  and, 
I  hear,  one  shortly  to  be  removed !" 

The  conservative  quiet  of  his  manner  lulled 
the  girl's  lingering  suspicions. 

And  yet, — there  was  her  still  unpaid  debt  of 
gratitude, — but, — it  was  a  social  secret  (their 
joint  property),  and  most  undesirable  as  to  pub- 
licity ! 

And, — so  with  all  a  timid  woman's  halting 
indecision, — Agnes  Hawthorn  quietly  avoided  all 
mention  of  Landon's  name!  The  tide  was  run- 
ning strongly  against  his  bark  of  Life,  now 
weathering  adverse  gales! 

Even  General  Hatcher — now  anxious  to  quit 
Rome,  evaded  the  young  beauty's  questions,  lest 
his  tell-tale  face  should  betray  his  own  heart- 


184  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

wearing  sorrow  over  Landon's  seemingly  pusil- 
lanimous behavior. 

"A  bitter  disappointment, — he's  not  the  man 
I  took  him  for,"  sighed  the  old  hero. 

"By  Jove!  When  I  get  home,  I  will  just  run 
over  to  Fort  Stanton  and  see  the  Atwaters.  I 
dare  not  write  to  them  this  ugly  situation, — for 
half  the  letters  posted  in  Italy  are  stolen  for  the 
stamps,  and — the  other  half  are  opened  and  read 
to  sate  the  gnawing  curiosity  of  police  spies, 
officials,  and  to  further  the  perpetual  warfare  of 
the  adherents  of  Pope  or  King. 

"If  any  one  can  wake  up  Sidney  Landon,  it 
certainly  will  be  Miles  Atwater." 

The  General  consumed  boxes  of  cigars  in  a 
vague  unrest.  He  feared  each  day  some  fatal 
confirmation  of  the  lies. 

General  Rufus  Hatcher  was,  however,  loth  to 
abandon  any  of  his  few  cherished  ideals.  Cap- 
tain Landon  had  been  to  him  as  the  ideal  rising 
cavalryman  of  the  army.  Hatcher  spent  a  whole 
day  in  writing  to  the  War  Department  and  the 
President  a  euphemistic  statement  of  Landon's 
condition. 

He  finished  with  strongly  recommending  that 


BEHIND  CLOSED  DOORS.  185 

the  President  kindly  extend  his  gracious  favor  to 
Landon,  and  allow  the  matter  of  the  reinstate- 
ment of  the  young  soldier  to  be  held  open  for 
another  year. 

The  honest  old  soldier  blushed  as  he  wrote  the 
closing  paragraphs: 

"I  shall  have  the  honor  upon  my  return  to  call 
personally  upon  Your  Excellency  and  to  explain 
the  peculiar  mental  and  physical  condition  of  my 
young  friend.  He  has  been  the  victim  of  a  very 
severe  attack  of  Roman  fever,  and  is  just  now 
able  to  resume  his  official  duties.  Doctor  Cesare 
Corvini,  the  leading  specialist  of  Rome,  who  at- 
tended him,  has  fully  explained  to  me  the  mental 
and  moral  dejection  which  follows  on,  as  an 
aftermath,  of  this  dreadful  and  weakening 
malady. 

"I  have  been  unable  to  arouse  Captain  Landon 
to  a  just  conception  of  the  gravity  of  the  situ- 
ation, as  affecting  his  future  career. 

"He  is  in  a  state  of  weakness  and  physical 
inertia,  following  upon  the  inroads  of  disease. 
His  honorable  wounds,  received  while  leading 
his  troops,  have  greatly  added  to  his  debility." 

"That  is  all  I  can  do,  to  hold  the  situation 


186  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

open,"  growled  Hatcher,  as  he  sealed  the  docu- 
ment. "The  boy  shall  have  a  fair  chance  to 
reconsider,  and  to  learn  by  his  own  experience, 
that  the  social  world  has  some  claims  to  a  man's 
confidence." 

Captain  Sidney  Landon's  altered  manner  was 
not  lost  upon  any  of  the  keen  observers  now 
watching  him,  when  he  silently  took  up  again  his 
work  at  the  Consulate  General. 

There  seemed  to  be  an  uneasy  unrest  in  the 
way  that  his  chosen  friends  hovered  around  him 
at  the  Eveless  Paradise,  and,  even  the  Melvilles 
forebore  to  break  in  upon  the  young  official's 
proud  reserve. 

Before  the  departure  of  General  Hatcher,  the 
Melvilles  assembled  the  Hollingsworths,  Grimes 
and  Hatton  and  the  old  soldier  at  a  farewell 
dinner. 

To  the  astonishment  of  his  chief,  Sidney  Lan- 
don  declined  his  invitation,  though  sent  in  a 
strictly  formal  manner. 

In  vain,  Gertrude  Melville  informed  her  guests 
that  Doctor  Corvini  had  strictly  forbidden  all 
social  excitement  and  unnecessary  fatigue. 

There  was  the   shadow  of  a  coming  storm 


BEHIND  CLOSED  DOORS.  187 

brooding   over   the   pleasant    household   in    the 
Palazzo  Vecchio. 

Two  of  the  anxious  circle  were  not  deceived 
by  Captain  Landon's  perfunctory  letter  of  regret. 

Forrest  Grimes  had  noted  that  Landon  now 
avoided  the  American  Club,  and  all  the  usual 
haunts  of  the  jeunesse  doree  of  Rome. 

"That  sinister  disclosure  of  Clark's  has  turned 
him  in  upon  himself,"  mused  the  journalist,  "and 
he  has  some  reason, — a  powerfully  impelling 
one,  that  he  does  not  face  the  music." 

The  absence  of  Miss  Agnes  Hawthorn  from 
the  Melville  dinner  did  not  escape  the  quick-eyed 
guests. 

And  Grimes,  with  great  astonishment,  also 
noted  the  anomaly  of  a  superb  dinner  at  the  Hotel 
Costanzi,  in  honor  of  General  Hatcher,  at  which 
the  Melvilles  met  their  secret  social  enemies,  the 
Brandons,  and  Mr.  Rawdon  Clark  was  the  second 
star  of  the  evening. 

A  final  reception  and  dejeuner  at  the  Brandons 
was  also  graced  by  General  Hatcher,  but,  the 
Consul  General  and  his  graceful  wife  were  con- 
spicuously absent, — the  western  capitalist,  how- 


188  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

ever,  acting  as  "Pere  d'honneur"  to  the  superb 
festivity. 

It  was  idle  to  deny  that  the  absence  of  the 
Vice  Consul  General  from  all  three  of  these  func- 
tions set  the  ball  of  gossip  again  rolling,  and  with 
unexampled  velocity. 

"Tabooed,  sent  to  Coventry,  and,  ignored," 
soliloquized  Forrest  Grimes.  "These  public  in- 
sults are  his  final  ruin,  unless  he  acts!  Shall  I 
tell  him  all?  The  whole  story  of  the  blackball- 
ing? Useless, — for  there  seems  now  to  be  no 
one  to  fight!" 

Forrest  Grimes  wondered  at  the  calmness  with 
which  Rawdon  Clark  had  explained  the  fracas  at 
the  American  Club  to  its  managing  President. 

"Who  could  notice  the  ravings  of  a  poor  fever 
patient?"  the  suave  capitalist  had  pityingly  said. 
"I  was  breakfasting  with  an  American  partner, 
Mr.  Burton  Wilmot,  when  this  unfortunate 
young  man  wandered  in,  behaving  in  a  most  in- 
coherent manner! 

"He  created  some  little  confusion,  but  my 
friend,  a  cool  frontiersman, — and  a  fearless  man 
of  honor, — simply  advised  me  to  ignore  the  whole 
affair ! 


BEHIND  CLOSED   DOORS.  189 

"I  pity  the  young  man,  for  he  could  not  dis- 
tinguish even  his  friends  from  myself  and  com- 
panion. 

"He  was  only  fighting  shadows, — poor  man, — 
let  it  go  at  that! 

"You  see  that  he  now  feels  so  much  ashamed 
of  himself,  that  he  very  wisely  avoids  the  club! 
His  proper  place  is  in  a  sanitarium!  Of  course, 
— he  merits  all  our  compassion !" 

"Clark  is  either  a  very  smooth  article,  or  else 
he  was  really  innocent  in  that  matter,"  mused 
Grimes.  "I  am  not  called  on  to  fight  for  the 
whole  Army,  but, — I  will  watch  over  poor  Lan- 
don!  If  there  is  to  be  any  more  of  this  'dead, 
cold,  open  cut,'  I  shall  certainly  ask  Hatton  to 
join  me  in  begging  Landon  to  leave  Rome  at 
once !  No  one  can  fight  the  whole  world  'en  Don 
Quixote!'  That  day  has  passed  forever!" 

It  was  on  the  eve  of  General  Rufus  Hatcher's 
departure  that  the  Minister  Resident  gave  his 
formal  dinner  of  farewell  to  the  national  hero, 
who  was  now  gladly  turning  his  face  homeward. 

While  every  American  of  note  in  Rome  was 
honored  with  an  invitation,  Forrest  Grimes, 
with  Hatton,  both  guests,  could  not  control  their 


190  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

astonishment  at  the  absence  of  Captain  Landon. 
Melville,  silent  and  distrait,  merely  filled  a  lay 
figure's  place  at  the  Minister's  splendid  entertain- 
ment. Landon  determinedly  kept  his  rooms  and 
avoided  all  social  appearances  without  exception. 

There  were  those  who  marveled  much  to  see 
the  third  place  of  honor  filled  by  Rawdon  Clark, 
Esq.,  of  the  Elkhorn  Mine. 

But  the  more  worldly-wise  of  the  guests  re- 
flected that — after  all — the  Minister  Resident 
was  dependent  upon  the  home  politicians  for  his 
transitory  glory.  His  tenure  of  office  was  the 
slender  single  hair  of  political  favor,  and  the 
Presidential  guillotine  axe  was  always  suspended 
over  his  head. 

What  could  be  denied  to  the  mighty  Croesus 
Clark,  the  reputed  owner  of  two  western  sena- 
tors as  well  as  the  richest  carbonate  mine  in 
Leadville  ? 

What  might  not  be  done  by  Rawdon  Clark, 
Esq.,  directing  owner  of  the  "Philadelphia  Mail," 
which  staid  old  journal  was  now  popularly  known 
as  the  "Philadelphia  Flail."  He  was  a  man  of 
power  "in  esse"  and  "in  posse." 

The  tactful  wife  of  the  Minister  had  duly  as- 


BEHIND  CLOSED   DOORS.  191 

signed  the  now  convalescent  beauty,  Agnes  Haw- 
thorn, to  the  prandial  care  of  Clark,  at  her  astute 
husband's  direction. 

"We  must  cultivate  that  man,  Maria,"  he  con- 
fided. "He  is  a  pyramid  of  political  weight;  he 
is  booked  for  the  U.  S.  Senate,  and  my  promo- 
tion lies  in  his  power ! 

"From  Colorado,  he  could  at  once  enter  the 
Senate,  double  banked.  He  carries  both  the 
other  men  in  his  pocket !  But  his  social  position 
is  higher !  He  even  dreams  of  conquering  a  share 
of  the  Keystone  State's  representation !  He  will 
soon  be  a  political  Warwick!  So,  give  him  all 
your  spare  moments,  and  distinguish  him  as  far 
as  possible." 

It  was  the  evening  of  Clark's  social  culmina- 
tion in  Rome  as  a  bright  particular  star,  for  his 
lavish  hospitalities  at  the  Cercle  de  Rome  had 
hypnotized  the  foreigners. 

Mrs.  Myra  Brandon's  "open  door"  policy  had 
drawn  the  floating  Americans,  and,  now,  the 
Minister  Resident  openly  crowned  him  as  the 
"first  citizen"  of  the  social  constituency. 

Champagne  and  Roman  punch  made  General 
Rufus  Hatcher  very  communicative  as  he  drove 


192  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

home  that  night  in  the  splendidly  appointed  car- 
riage of  the  wily  Clark,  who  was  to  convoy  the 
departing  guest  as  far  as  Florence. 

With  a  subtle  flattery,  Clark  had  retained  a 
private  car  as  far  as  Florence  for  the  General 
and  Mrs.  Montgomery. 

On  this  evening  drive  home,  the  General  con- 
fessed to  a  few  thousands  of  dollars  of  hard  won 
savings,  and  asked  the  capitalist's  advice  as  to  a 
"turn  in  stocks." 

The  dancing  light  of  joy  glittered  in  Clark's 
wary  eyes,  as  he  confidentially  said :  "I  will  give 
you  a  letter  to  my  New  York  broker.  I  will  see 
that  you  are  put  into  a  deal  that  will  double  it! 
No!  No  thanks!  General!  Leave  all  to  me!  I 
will  give  you  my  own  guarantee  of  honor  against 
loss!" 

Disarmed  by  all  this  "brotherly  love,"  the  old 
General  opened  his  heart  when  Clark  asked  him 
if  he  could  be  of  any  service  to  him  in  Rome. 

"I  shall  remain  on  the  Continent  for  another 
year,"  complacently  said  Clark. 

The  story  of  Sidney  Landon  easily  oozed  out 
of  the  old  veteran's  addled  mind.  Leaning  back 


BEHIND  CLOSED   DOORS.  193 

in  a  delicious  reverie,  Rawdon  Clark  listened  with 
a  deferential  interest. 

"Trust  to  me  to  keep  an  eye  on  this  young 
man,"  he  purred,  "for  your  sake!  You  can  write 
to  me,  after  you  reach  Washington,  just  how  the 
President  views  his  case!" 

Rufus  Hatcher  went  to  his  rest  somewhat 
shamefaced  that  his  adieu  to  Sidney  Landon 
could  be  only  for  an  hour  in  the  morning  before 
the  departure  of  the  noon  train.  He  felt  they 
had  grown  sadly  apart.  He  burned  to  demand 
flatly  of  the  Minister  or  Melville  the  reason  of 
Landon's  absence  from  the  fete  par  excellence. 

But  he  was  forced  to  grumble  himself  to  sleep, 
while  Rawdon  Clark,  still  in  his  dress  suit, — 
drank  to  his  own  future  glories  in  a  little  private 
seance  in  his  own  rooms. 

"Capital,"  he  laughed.  "I  can  now  have  both 
Allerton  and  Bostwick  flatly  oppose  Landon's  re- 
entry to  the  army.  These  powerful  Senators  can 
overweigh  the  simple  old  soldier!  What  a  fool 
a  man  is  to  tell  all  he  knows!" 

Clark  glanced  at  his  table  loaded  down  with 
invitations ! 

"I  have  snowed  this  young  jackanapes  under," 

13 


194  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

he  mused ;  "and,  the  fool  stands  off  in  his  stupid 
pride,  now,  and  is  playing  right  into  my  hand !" 

He  well  knew  from  Mrs.  Montgomery  that  a 
simple  carte  de  ceremonie  had  been  Sidney  Lan- 
don's  only  social  approach  upon  Miss  Agnes 
Hawthorn,  now  thoroughly  afraid  of  some  gos- 
sipy disclosure. 

"The  Minister's  dinner  was  a  ticklish  corner," 
laughed  Clark. 

He  chuckled  over  his  own  acuteness  at  sending 
Mrs.  Brandon  to  frighten  the  Minister's  timid 
wife  with  stories  of  Landon's  frightful  "Epilep- 
tic" attack  at  the  club. 

"Such  a  man  is  positively  dangerous,  my  dear," 
said  Myra  Brandon,  as  she  sailed  away  in  proud 
swings  like  a  Spanish  galleon. 

But  the  poison  deftly  insinuated  into  Minister 
Van  Buren  Hartford's  mind  had  done  its  work! 
Rawdon  Clark  builded  well  when  he  lost  five 
thousand  francs  at  baccarat  to  the  Marquis  di 
Santa  Lucia,  at  the  Cercle  de  Rome.  A  friendly 
staking  of  this  same  noble  later  made  the  impe- 
cunious Italian  as  soft  as  wax  in  the  schemer's 
hands.  And  so,  Santa  Lucia  had,  under  the 
guise  of  an  official  confidence,  filled  the  Minister's 


BEHIND  CLOSED   DOORS.  195 

ears  with  the  story  of  Landon's  blackballing  and 
a  resume  of  all  the  rolled  up  Roman  scandals. 

"There  is  my  friend  Rawdon  Clark,"  he  said; 
"he  knows  that  this  man  was  kicked  out  of  the 
American  army,  only  his  generous,  noble  soul  will 
not  let  him  blacken  a  countryman." 

As  Santa  Lucia  really  held  a  minor  place  in  the 
Foreign  office,  the  startled  Minister  at  once  men- 
tally crossed  Landon  off  his  social  books  forever ! 

"Remember,  mon  cher  Ministre,"  silkily  said 
the  Marquis,  "this  is  all  in  strict  confidence, — 
behind  closed  doors!  It  is  only  to  shield  you  that 
I  violate  a  club  rule, — never  to  talk  of  our  inner 
life." 

The  parting  between  General  Hatcher  and  Sid- 
ney Landon  was  one  of  mutual  constraint  and 
relief.  The  Captain  awaited  his  estranged  friend 
in  his  own  rooms  at  the  Eveless  Paradise.  Lan- 
don was  but  slowly  groping  toward  the  light  as 
regarded  his  altered  social  position.  There  were 
few  cards  and  no  invitations  seeking  him  now, 
and  he  awoke  at  last  with  a  start  to  realize  that 
Doctor  Corvini,  the  faithful  Morgan,  and  Grimes 
and  Hatton  now  comprised  his  entire  active  social 
list. 


196  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

The  singular  avoidance  of  the  Melvilles  by 
Miss  Hawthorn  had  also  forced  itself  upon  his 
inner  consciousness,  for  he  knew  of  her  social 
reappearance,  a  thing  of  beauty  and  of  added  joy 
everywhere  in  Rome.  He  was  aware  also  of  her 
invitation  to  Myra  Brandon's  dearest  friend, 
Mrs.  Agatha  Waring,  a  prononcee  young  widow, 
to  share  her  splendid  solitude. 

General  Hatcher's  manly  heart  smote  him  as 
he  saw  the  pale  face  of  the  young  soldier,  now 
shaven,  but  only  to  display  his  sunken  cheeks ! 

"Sidney!"  he  cried.  "Will  you  not  give  me 
your  confidence?" 

"There  is  nothing  to  give,  General!"  proudly 
answered  Landon,  turning  his  head  away  to  hide 
a  sudden  emotion. 

"I  am  thinking  of  soon  leaving  Rome." 

"See  here,"  pleaded  the  kindly  old  Hatcher, 
with  a  quiver  in  his  voice.  "You  are  bent  now 
upon  ruining  your  second  career!  Recall  your 
foolish  words!  Let  me  cable  to  you  your  army 
appointment!  Come  back  to  us,  my  boy!" 

"General!"  sadly  said  the  agitated  Captain, 
"My  honor,  my  peace  of  mind,  and — the  honor 
of  others — forbids!" 


BEHIND  CLOSED   DOORS.  197 

"Then,  all  I  say  is,"  cried  the  excited  veteran, 
dashing  his  card  down  upon  the  table,  "when 
you  are  at  the  end  of  your  rope,  you'll  find  me 
at  the  Army  and  Navy  Club,  Washington." 

The  young  man  rose  and  stood  in  a  respectful 
salute,  as  the  old  warrior  hurried  away  to  hide 
the  gathering  tears. 

"/  believe  that  the  boy  is  mad,"  he  testily  cried, 
as  he  drove  away  to  join  Mrs.  Montgomery  at 
the  Hotel  Costanzi. 

Captain  Landon  slowly  dressed,  and  then  made 
his  way  to  the  Consulate  General.  He  merely 
nodded  to  Grimes  and  Hatton,  who  were  watch- 
ing him,  hidden  in  a  corner  of  the  smoking  room. 

When  Landon's  tall  form  disappeared,  Grimes 
resolutely  said :  "Now  that  Hatcher  is  gone,  we 
must  dip  in  our  oars!  Landon  must  face  the 
music  at  once,  or  else  leave  Rome!  And,  if  he 
stays, — we  must  tell  him  all  from  the  first  to  the 
last!" 

Frank  Hatton  bowed  his  head  in  a  sorrowful 
silence.  He  had  been  made  aware  of  Rawdon 
Clark's  changed  manner  in  the  last  month,  a 
patient  urbanity,  a  deferential  courtesy  now 
marked  his  employer's  newer  moods. 


198  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

The  magnate  had  even  spoken  of  Sidney  Lan- 
don  with  a  cordial  sympathy. 

"I  suppose  the  blonde  goddess  has  decided  in 
Clark's  favor!"  mused  Hatton.  "The  Croesus 
is  to  be  the  happy  man. 

"Yes!"  gloomily  said  Grimes.  "Landon's 
career  in  Rome  is  ruined !  The  women,  too,  have 
all  turned  their  thumbs  down!  Vae  Victis!  He 
has  been  tried  and  condemned  unheard  behind 
closed  doors!  And,  money  has  won  its  usual 
victory — a  golden  walkover!" 

While  they  were  speaking,  Vice  Consul  Gen- 
eral Landon,  entering  his  office,  was  startled  by 
a  sudden  recontre  with  the  United  States  Minis- 
ter Resident. 

The  pompous  diplomat  was  wending  his  way 
down  the  long  hall  of  the  Palazzo  Vecchio  to  the 
private  rooms  of  the  Chief. 

Utterly  ignorant  of  the  Minister's  secret  decree 
of  social  banishment,  Landon  courteously  spoke 
and  offered  his  hand  "en  Americain." 

He  remained  rooted  to  the  spot  as  the  Min- 
ister, calmly  ignoring  both  outstretched  hand  and 
polite  greeting, — passed  on  in  silence,  with  a 
frozen  stare. 


AT  THE  FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI.         199 

A  ferocious  gleam  of  joy  lit  up  Jacopo  Mas- 
pero's  eyes  as  he  touched  Landon's  arm,  and, 
with  mock  humility,  handed  him  his  letters. 

Landon  mechanically  tore  open  the  first,  and 
read  it,  with  an  increasing  wonder! 

It  was  postmarked  Cairo,  Egypt,  and  bore  the 
chiffre  of  the  Egyptian  War  Department!  The 
young  man's  eyes  flashed  out  with  the  old  soldier 
light  again! 

"Thank  God!  I  shall  have  a  chance  to  die  by 
the  spears  of  El  Mahdi's  fanatics!" 

He  realized  that  the  Minister's  person  was 
sacred, — and,  an  instant  leave  of  absence  was  his 
only  possible  safeguard! 

"I'll  cable  my  acceptance  at  once!"  he  mused, 
while  within  Melville's  room  he  was  being  judged 
behind  closed  doors. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

AT  THE  FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI. 

While  Captain  Sidney  Landon  awaited  the 
departure  of  the  highest  American  representative 
in  Italy,  he  mechanically  busied  himself  with  the 


200  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

arrangement  of  the  few  private  paper?  which 
were  locked  in  his  personal  desk. 

Suddenly  he  caught  Maspero's  glances  resting 
upon  him,  in  an  ill-disguised  triumph. 

And  at  the  sight  of  his  enemy's  glee  his  old 
fighting  spirit  returned. 

He  drew  the  faithful  Morgan  aside  into  the 
little  consultation  room. 

"Edwin,"  he  said,  with  a  voice  trembling  with 
rage.  "Pray  go  into  Mr.  Melville's  studio  and 
tell  him  that  I  ask  for  a  few  words  with  him, 
here,  instantly,  on  an  important  matter  which 
must  be  laid  before  His  Excellency  before  he 
leaves  the  building!" 

The  faithful  secretary  hastened  away  mutter- 
ing "What's  in  the  wind?  Landon  looks  as  if 
he  had  received  his  own  death  sentence!" 

While  awaiting  the  arrival  of  his  Chief,  Cap- 
tain Landon  began  to  feel  the  full  force  of  the 
open  and  avowed  insult  offered  him  before  the 
man  whose  now  totally  experted  accounts  proved 
him  to  be  a  tricky  scoundrel. 

"I  must  not  abandon  Morgan  to  Signior  Mas- 
pero's rancor,"  he  muttered.  "The  mills  of  the 


AT  THE  FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI.          201 

gods  shall  grind  him  slowly,  perhaps, — but, — all 
in  due  time!" 

When  Morgan  returned,  Sidney  Landon  whis- 
pered: "Reserve  to-night  for  me!  Come  and 
dine  with  me,  and  spend  the  whole  evening.  I 
leave  the  office  to  stay  forever,  but,  your  work 
must  go  on !  This  Italian  hound  must  finally  be 
brought  to  bay!" 

As  the  young  man  left  the  consultation  room, 
Arthur  Melville  hastily  entered  with  his  face  a 
curious  study  of  sorrow  and  indecision. 

He  had  vainly  sought  for  the  particular  plati- 
tude to  cover  the  "mauvais  quart  d'heure."  The 
first  glance  at  Landon  told  him  that  some  random 
shaft  had  gone  home. 

Captain  Landon  bowed  with  all  the  formality 
of  a  duellist  upon  the  field  of  honor.  He  ex- 
tended a  sheet  of  dispatch  paper  upon  which  a 
few  lines  had  been  hastily  traced. 

"Will  you  favor  me  with  asking  His  Excellency 
to  approve  this  leave  of  absence  for  one  month?" 
coldly  remarked  Lando<n. 

"The  State  Department  usually  acts  upon  these 
matters!"  murmured  the  astonished  Melville. 

"Inhere  is  no  time  to  wait,"  calmly  rejoined 


202  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Landon,  his  face  now  as  tensely  drawn  as  a  young 
Pawnee's  upon  his  first  war  path. 

"I  shall  cable  my  formal  resignation  through 
you,  the  very  moment  that  you  have  approved  this 
and  Minister  Hartford  has  signed  it." 

With  a  perfunctory  sigh,  the  irresolute  Mel- 
ville turned,  and  quickly  vanished  in  the  direction 
of  the  studio.  The  soldier  walked  into  the  main 
office  room. 

In  five  minutes  his  few  belongings  were  all 
locked  up  in  his  dispatch  box. 

Calling  the  office  messenger,  he  sent  the  lad 
away  to  the  Eveless  Paradise  with  his  simple 
archives. 

With  a  whispered  direction  to  Morgan  to  take 
charge  of  the  office  until  the  Consul  General 
should  give  his  own  personal  directions,  the 
young  man,  picking  up  his  hat,  stick  and  top 
coat,  "stood  at  attention"  when  the  fluttered 
Consul  General  joined  him  in  the  private  room. 

He  extended  his  hand  for  the  paper  without 
a  word,  read  the  signatures,  and  then  bowed 
gravely. 

"I  will  now  cable  my  resignation  to  the  State 
Department,  sir,  and  ask  that  my  successor  be 


AT  THE   FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI.          203 

instantly  appointed.  I  only  take  this  month's 
leave  of  absence  so  as  to  be  enabled  to  sign  any 
papers  covering  my  official  career.  Mr.  Morgan 
alone  will  have  my  address." 

Then,  without  turning  his  head,  he  strode  out 
into  the  gloomy  hallway  of  the  Palazzo  Vecchio. 

There  he  encountered  Miss  Rose  in  Bloom, 
departing  for  her  morning  walk. 

."My  little  playmate,"  he  cried,  touched  with 
some  gentle  emotion. 

He  lifted  the  rosebud  child,  kissed  her  fair  and 
innocent  face,  and  then  slowly  descended  the 
stairs. 

As  he  stood  in  the  shadow  of  the  great  gate- 
way, a  hand  was  laid  upon  his  arm.  Landon 
almost  fiercely  eyed  Arthur  Melville. 

"Pray,  not  one  word,"  he  said.  "I  can  never 
forget  your  kindness  to  the  stranger  within  your 
gates !  I  only  hope,  for  your  own  sake,  that  you 
will  awake  to  the  grave  responsibilities  of  your 
office.  I  go  back  to  my  rooms!  I  shall  leave 
Rome,  probably  forever,  to-morrow  at  midnight. 
You  can  meet  me  as  a  private  citizen  down  there 
on  the  Corso !" 

Arthur  Melville  was  left  speechless,  for  vain 


204  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

words  had  failed  him.  He  saw  the  agony  on  the 
young  soldier's  face. 

There  was  the  sudden  frou  frou  of  silken  skirts 
and  Gertrude  Melville  stood  beside  them,  on  the 
very  spot  where  Agnes  Hawthorn  had  fallen  on 
the  luckless  night  of  the  visit  to  the  Colosseum. 

All  the  mute  entreaty  of  a  woman's  awakened 
soul  in  her  shining  eyes !  She  gently  drew  Cap- 
tain Landon  aside! 

"Morgan  has  told  me,"  she  softly  said,  "that 
you  are  to  leave  us  forever !  Have  you  a  right  to 
go  without  one  word  to  me?  You  need  a  cham- 
pion, now!  Remember,  too,  that  you  have  broken 
our  bread ! 

"Promise  me  that  you  will  not  leave  Rome 
without  seeing  me!" 

Her  gentle  bosom  was  heaving  with  some  un- 
explained thrill  of  suddenly  evoked  sympathy  for 
the  friendless  man. 

Captain  Landon  stood  there  silent  and  irreso- 
lute, while  Arthur  Melville  had  hastily  sought  the 
other  end  of  the  loggia. 

"I  will  never  re-enter  the  Palazzo  Vecchio," 
sadly  said  Landon.  "The  shadow  of  some  great 
wrong  broods  over  me!  You  can  not  come  to 


AT  THE  FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI.          205 

me !  And, — I  would  not  have  you  write !  When 
I  go — I  go,  as  the  crow  flies,  to  far-away  lands !" 

"What  I  must  say  to  you  can  not  be  written, 
and  no  friend  could  intervene,"  murmured  Ger- 
trude, a  crimson  blush  stealing  over  her  pale 
cheeks. 

"When  do  you  go?"  she  faltered. 

"I  take  the  midnight  train  to-morrow  for  Ge- 
noa," the  soldier  said.  "Best  that  we  do  not  meet! 
You  can  do  nothing  for  me!  'Centre  la  force,  il 
ny  a  pas  de  resistance!'  It  is  the  work  of  the 
Fates !  I  am  doomed  to  suffer  in  silence !" 

The  beautiful  woman  was  reading  his  shad- 
owed soul  in  his  darkened  eyes. 

"Be  at  the  Fountain  of  Trevi  at  nine  to-mor- 
row evening,"  she  whispered.  "/  must  see  you, 
if  only  for  Agnes'  sake!  You  shall  not  leave 
Rome  without  one  heart  vowed  to  right  you  from 
these  frightful  scandals." 

He  raised  his  head  in  a  proud  disdain,  but  the 
gentle  lady  fled  away,  with  a  dainty  finger  on  her 
rosy  lip  in  a  last  mute  command ! 

Sidney  Landon  watched  her  light  form  vanish 
in  the  gloom  of  the  winding  stair. 

"May  God  go  with  you,  Madonna!"  he  softly 


206  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

said,  and  then  strode  out  into  the  garish  sunlight. 

An  hour  later  he  entered  his  room  at  the  Eve- 
less  Paradise,  and,  locking  the  door,  threw  him- 
self down  to  cool  his  throbbing  temples. 

He  had  changed  his  whole  life  by  a  dozen 
cabled  words  to  the  War  Ministry  of  the  Khedive 
at  Cairo,  and  his  unconditional  and  immediate 
resignation  had  been  duly  telegraphed  to  the  De- 
partment of  State  at  Washington.  He  had 
burned  his  ships!  A  new  field — new  dangers — 
new  adventures  lay  before  him  in  the  misty  veiled 
future. 

His  stern  pride  now  flamed  up  in  his  bitter, 
desolate  heart. 

"Morgan  alone  shall  follow  on  my  work  of  en- 
trapping this  Italian  scoundrel !  Grimes  and  Hat- 
ton  are  good  fellows  enough,  but  why  should  they 
suffer  for  me  ? 

"As  for  this  timid  snob  of  a  Minister,  I  sup- 
pose that  my  place  is  wanted !" 

He  wondered  from  what  quarter  the  stab  in  the 
dark  had  come,  for  all  his  later  social  isolation 
now  flashed  over  him. 

"I  am  a  free  man,  at  any  rate,"  he  bitterly 
cried,  as  he  unlocked  a  case  and  slipped  a  revolver 


AT  THE  FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI.         20? 

in  his  pocket.  "God  help  the  man  who*  crosses  my 
path  now.  I  will  play  a  lone  hand  against  a  lying 
world!" 

His  eyes  rested  on  General  Hatcher's  last  card 
of  adieu  flung  upon  the  table. 

"Poor  dear  old  hero!  Gallant  old  friend!  You 
shall  have  a  letter, — at  least,  a  few  lines  to  show 
that  I  am  grateful !" 

After  he  had  written  and  personally  mailed  his 
acceptance  of  the  Egyptian  army  commission  and 
his  formal  Consular  resignation  at  the  end  of  the 
leave  of  absence,  his  mind  reverted  to  the  harm- 
less assignation  at  the  Fountain  of  Trevi. 

Still  in  ignorance  of  the  web  of  scandal  deftly 
woven  around  him,  he  remembered  Gertrude 
Melville's  words,  "for  Agnes'  sake!" 

"And,  she,  too,  has  fallen  off,  her  gratitude  was 
short  lived  enough!  It  matters  little,  for  I  will 
have  ample  time  to  forget  her  over  there  in  Abys- 
sinia. 

"The  Soudan's  sands  may  cover  my  bones  and, 
— /  find  a  welcome  rest  forever  by  the  palm- 
fringed  Nile." 

Captain  Landon's  evil  genius  ruled  the  hour! 
He  was  still  stemming  adverse  seas,  for,  while  he 


208  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

looked  out  into  a  dreary  future, — there  was  a 
woman  pacing  her  splendid  boudoir  at  the  Cos- 
tanzi  in  a  wild  unrest  of  heart ! 

With  tears  and  sobs, — Mrs.  Montgomery  had 
thrown  herself  at  Agnes  Hawthorn's  feet  and  left 
behind  her  the  legacy  of  all  the  artfully  contrived 
slanders  of  Mrs.  Dora  Prindle,  filtered  through 
Barker  Bolton's  letters.  "The  proof s^ — the  proofs 
— they  are  all  now  on  their  way !  You  must  shun 
this  disgraced  man  or  else  pay  the  penalty  of  a 
blackened  name !  Myra  Brandon  will  watch  over 
you!  Trust  only  to  her !" 

And  then,  breaking  in  upon  this  stormy  mood, 
resolute  Gertrude  Melville, — now  a  secret  cham- 
pion,— came  to  warn  the  heiress  of  an  unpaid 
debt  of  gratitude. 

"Landon  is  leaving  Rome  forever, — poor, — 
friendless, — disheartened,  and  with  not  a  single 
champion  left  behind!  Even  Morgan  does  not 
know  where  he  will  recklessly  cast  himself  away, 
— he  has  parted  in  coldness  and  estrangement 
with  General  Hatcher, — the  old  veteran  himself 
charged  me  to  watch  over  him ! 

"And, — the  Minister  has  socially  crushed  him ! 

"I    know   not    why — for — Arthur, — my    hus- 


AT  THE  FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI.         209 

band, — for  the  first  time  in  our  marriage, — has 
plead  a  sworn  secrecy ! 

"I  owe  to  Captain  Landon  nothing  but  a 
woman's  loyal  faith — but,  Agnes, — you  owe  him 
the  unpaid  debt  of  a  life  preserved!" 

The  two  fair  women  clasped  heart  to  heart, 
mingled  their  tears,  as  the  heiress  sadly  recalled 
her  own  pledged  secrecy. 

But,  when  Gertrude  Melville  left  her  orphaned 
friend,  there  had  also  been  given  to  her  the  pledge 
of  a  sisterly  aid  in  the  masquerade  of  the  Foun- 
s  tain  of  Trevi. 

"I  come  to  you  for  help,"  pleaded  Gertrude. 
"To  whom  else  could  I  come?  No  one  must  ever 
know!  You  must  be  alone  the  guardian  of  my 
secret ! 

"For  Landon  shall  know  all  his  danger,  and, — 
you  can  help  me  in  this  and  pay  your  debt  in  this 
wise!  I  dare  trust  to  no  one  else!  You  can  be 
draped  beyond  all  recognition !" 

With  a  trembling  heart,  Agnes  Hawthorn, 
smiling  through  her  tears,  consented  to  brave  the 
night  shadows  of  Rome. 

It  needed  all  the  stony  apathy  of  Landon's  sol- 
dier nature  to  control  himself  when  Forrest 

14 


210  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Grimes  and  Frank  Hatton  burst  in  upon  his  rapid 
packing. 

A  sudden  wave  of  excitement  seemed  to  have 
permeated  the  whole  of  the  Eveless  Paradise. 
But  the  military  aplomb  of  the  Captain  was  equal 
to  the  occasion.  On  Doctor  Corvini's  noon-day 
visit  he  had  gently  forced  upon  that  quaint  old 
savant  a  very  handsome  honorarium. 

"I  am  going  over  to  the  Riviera  for  a  month, 
my  dear  Doctor,"  he  gently  said. 

"I  have  a  leave  of  absence  for  thirty  days.  It 
can  be  extended,  ad  libitum, — and,  so,  I  will  slip 
away  and  say  good-bye  to  no  one !" 

The  gentle-minded  old  physician  looked 
troubled  at  heart.  He  had  learned  to  love  his 
patient. 

"Have  you  any  one  to  look  out  for  you  there,  in 
case  of  a  further  relapse?  Ah!  The  tiger  that 
Roman  fever  is!  I  shall  be  glad  to  give  you  a 
letter  to  my  dear  colleague,  Doctor  Montaverde!" 

Captain  Landon's  eyes  glistened,  for  the  old 
man  had  been  untiring. 

"There  is  Consul  Swasey,  a  lifelong  friend  of 
my  father's — the  American  Consul  at  Nice. 

"All  my  letters  will  go  to  him!    And,  so, — I 


AT  THE  FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI.          211 

can  consult  you  by  letter,  and  I  shall  still  feel  near 
to  you!  It  is  best  that  I  should  go  at  once.  I 
need  a  change  from  here. 

"I  have  threaded  every  gallery, — dreamed  in 
every  church, — climbed  every  historic  mountain 
and,"  he  faintly  laughed,  "I  could  gain  a  living 
as  a  Roman  guide,  for  from  the  depths  of  the 
Catacombs, — to  the  ball  on  St.  Peter's, — from 
the  dungeons  of  San  Angelo,  to  the  summit  of 
Soracte, — I  have  filled  myself  with  the  mournful 
atmosphere  of  the  Eternal  City. 

"Perhaps,  Monte  Carlo  and  the  rattling  fun  of 
Nice  may  brighten  me.  There  are  always  some 
American  war  ships  at  Villefranche,  stationed  as 
'near  the  ladies'  as  possible!" 

"Ah,  my  boy,"  sighed  the  old  Cavaliere,  who 
wore  a  dozen  orders  over  his  wasted  breast, 
"promise  me  that  you  will  drink  of  the  Fountain 
of  Trevi.  Throw  in  a  silver  coin, — shut  your 
eyes  and  pray  to  Fortuna, — then — you  will  surely 
wander  back  to  Rome — and,  remember — you  will 
meet  those  who  stand  there  beside  you!  The 
fountain  is  faithful, — it  is  the  shrine  for  parted 
lovers!  Its  very  waters  whisper  of  peace  and 
happiness  1" 


212  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

And,  so,  with  a  fatherly  benediction,  the  aged 
Doctor  left  his  strangely  reticent  patient. 

It  was  fortunate  that  the  two  journalists  fell 
upon  the  medical  man  and  extracted  his  story, 
for,  with  a  hollow  pretense  of  gayety,  Landon 
only  told  his  two  chums  that  he  was  taking  a  run 
over  to  the  Riviera.  "You  are  packing  every- 
thing, however!"  agnostically  said  Forrest 
Grimes. 

"A  good  soldier  is  never  separated  from  his 
baggage,"  laughed  Landon.  "My  possessions  are 
so  few  that  I  can  not  spare  them!  Now,  seri- 
ously— "  he  said,  with  averted  eyes,  "I  shall  say 
good-bye  to  no  one, — for, — my  return  is  only  a 
matter  of  time !" 

Frank  Hatton  broke  out  into  an  unaccustomed 
enthusiasm.  "I  will  rally  all  the  fellows  for  a 
good-bye  send  off!" 

"Pray  do  not,  Frank!"  harshly  cried  Landon. 
"I  have  asked  Ned  Morgan  to  come  down  and 
spend  the  whole  evening  in  closing  up  my  papers 
and  returns !  It  will  take  us  till  midnight. 

"To-morrow  morning  I  close  up  all  my  busi- 
ness. I'd  like  to  see  both  you  men  in  the  after- 
noon, and  then  I  send  my  luggage  to  the  station, 


AT  THE   FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI.         213 

taking  the  midnight  through  train!  Morgan 
claims  the  right  to  close  up  the  little  odds  and 
ends  I  leave  behind." 

There  was  a  long  secret  conference  on  this  last 
evening  of  Landon's  Roman  life  between  Grimes 
and  Hatton.  For  the  sake  of  friendship,  they  de- 
cided to  say  nothing  to  the  Melvilles  of  Landon's 
sudden  flitting. 

"I  suppose  there  has  really  been  an  official  row 
following  Minister  Hartford's  ignoring  the  Vice 
Consul  General  about  that  dinner  matter.  It's  a 
pretty  mess  as  it  now  stands ! 

"But, — as  to  the  Captain's  reputation!  This 
sudden  flight  will  leave  his  name  at  the  mercy  of 
every  coward  in  Rome!" 

A  long  discussion  of  the  whole  miserable  busi- 
ness decided  the  friends  to  jointly  write  to  the 
American  Consul  at  Nice  a  full  statement  of  the 
whole  veiled  intrigues,  holding  nothing  back ! 

Even  the  club  blackballing  was  to  be  detailed 
in  full !  "We  will  wait  to  see  what  happens  for 
the  first  fortnight,"  said  the  cautious  Grimes, 
"and  then  Landon  can  either  come  back  and  face 
the  whole  situation,  or,  if  he  so  chooses,  resign 
and  go  home  from  Nice ! 


214  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"It  would  only  make  him  a  victim  of  butchery 
to  tell  him  all  now !  Some  of  these  Italian  sword 
twisters  would  surely  kill  him!  He  can  advise, 
there,  with  dear  old  Swasey,  a  pattern  gentleman 
of  the  old  school." 

It  was  two  o'clock  in  the  morning  before  Ed- 
win Morgan  left  Sidney  Landon's  apartments, 
and  Signior  Jacopo  Maspero,  busied  in  an  ex- 
cited conference  with  Rawdon  Clark,  on  the 
Quirinal,  would  have  shuddered  for  his  future 
had  he  known  that  Sidney  Landon  bore  away  in 
his  luggage  a  full  set  of  the  tabulated  proofs  and 
calculations  vouching  for  Maspero's  ingenious 
rascality  of  years. 

"I  shall  hold  these  certified  copies,  for  a  time, 
Morgan,"  said  the  ex-Vice  Consul  General.  "Do 
you  follow  on  and  accumulate  further  and  quiet 
proofs  of  your  own ! 

"You  will  be  the  only  man  in  Rome  to  whom 
Consul  Swasey  will  give  my  address,  and, — that 
— only,  as  the  last  extremity.  He  will  send  on 
all  letters,  but  we  will,  with  patience,  be  able  to 
trace  out  who  is  behind  Maspero  in  his  villainy. 

"Either  some  one  of  the  rapacious  Roman 
bankers,  or  a  committee  of  the  thieving  shop  keep- 


AT  THE  FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI.         215 

ers  and  pseudo  art  dealers !  Perhaps  even  Bran- 
don uses  him  as  a  stool  pigeon  to  draw  trade  to 
his  'art'  mill ! 

"If  forced  to  act,  by  accident,  go  in  yourself 
and  crush  Maspero!  I  will  not  open  Melville's 
eyes.  He  is  a  vague  dreamer,  the  unsuspecting 
tool  of  this  political  Minister  Resident,  and,  pop! 
— some  day  he  will  be  cast  out,  and  then,  some 
one  of  Rawdon  Clark's  political  proteges  will  re- 
lieve Melville!  So, — only  guard  your  own  head, 
for  Maspero  will  surely  attack  you — and, — who- 
ever has  been  secretly  'gunning  for  me,'  will  also 
try  to  punish  you,  dear  boy,  for  being  my  friend !" 
The  two  men's  eyes  meet  in  a  silent  pledge  of  last- 
ing friendship. 

"There  are  rumors,"  said  Morgan,  as  he 
wrapped  his  cloak  around  him  to  leave,  "that  this 
millionaire,  Clark,  is  soon  to  marry  Miss  Haw- 
thorn and  then  begin  his  political  life  with  sup- 
planting Van  Buren  Hartford  as  Minister  Resi- 
dent! I'm  told  that  he  has  even  been  pricing 
palaces,  and  proposes  to  entertain  in  a  way  to 
dazzle  even  the  impoverished  King  Humbert !" 

Edwin  Morgan  left  without  noticing  the  spasm 
of  disgust  which  swept  across  Sidney  Landon's 


216  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

face,   but   the   restless   soldier   paced   his  lonely 
rooms  till  the  star  dials  hinted  of  morn ! 

Too  late  he  felt  that  he  had  been  outwitted  and 
maligned. 

"I  suppose  it's  the  old  thing!"  he  gloomily  said. 
"These  cursed  anonymous  letters!  If  I  could 
surely  trace  them  to  that  stony-hearted  woman 
fiend, — not  even  her  bluff  old  husband's  bravery 
would  save  her !" 

In  the  smoking  room  of  the  Eveless  Paradise 
Hatton  and  Grimes  were  still  uneasily  discussing 
the  sudden  hegira.  Frank  Hatton,  whose  robust 
manliness  was  evoked  by  the  defenseless  loneli- 
ness of  Captain  Landon's  position,  sighed  as  he 
summed  up  his  final  opinion. 

"It  seems  half-hearted  and  unfriendly  in  us  to 
let  Landon  go  away  in  total  ignorance  of  the  un- 
derhanded fight  against  him ! 

"It  has  been  all  carried  on  behind  closed  doors, 
but  it  has  done  its  work — even — to  the  estrange- 
ment of  the  Melvilles, — his  dearest  friends !" 

Forrest  Grimes  sadly  shook  his  head  as  he  took 
his  bed  candle.  "If  we  overwhelmed  him,  now, 
with  a  full  disclosure, — there  would  surely  be 
blood  shed  before  to-morrow  night !  Remember, 


AT  THE  FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI.         217 

— we  may  save  him  yet  by  watching  his  enemies 
in  this  month.  It's  time  enough  to  stand  by  him, 
if  he  comes  back  to  face  them !" 

The  friends  were  ignorant  of  Sidney  Landon's 
proud  resentment  of  the  Minister's  official  insult, 
— a  grossness  offered  in  his  own  office. 

They  knew  not  of  the  self-deception  of  the  un- 
happy Landon,  who  had  recognized  in  the 
averted  faces  of  friends  the  effective  work  of  the 
anonymous  letters  which  had  pursued  him  for 
years  in  the  army — and,  he, — looked  far  away  to 
the  veiled  hand  which  had  dealt  the  dastardly 
blow. 

But  the  saddened  man,  pacing  his  room,  in  vain 
tried  to  hide  the  sharpest  wound  of  all, — Agnes 
Hawthorn's  seeming  cold  indifference. 

Her  beautiful  face  had  illumined  his  shaded 
life, — his  soul  had  leaped  into  a  newer  life, — the 
resurrection  of  Love, — when  her  helpless  head 
lay  upon  his  shoulder ! 

Pausing  in  his  midnight  "sentry  go,"  he  bit- 
terly murmured,  "If  we  stood  on  even  terms, — 
I  would  face  her, — right  here,  with  the  truth! 
She  should  have  the  key  of  the  past, — she  alone! 
But,  her  riches, — and  my  poverty, — have  made  a 


218  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

gulf  between'us  wider  than  the  green  rolling  At- 
lantic,— the  unbridged  chasm  of  unequal  sta- 
tion!" 

Consul  General  Melville  was  keenly  watched  as 
he  emerged  from  Captain  Landon's  rooms,  after 
making  his  good-bye  call  upon  the  silent  and 
stately  young  man  on  the  morning  of  his  last  day 
in  Rome. 

Ignorant  of  the  details  of  the  Minister's  open 
affront, — Melville  felt  rebuffed  when  Landon 
coldly  thanked  him  for  his  offers  of  closing  up 
any  social  or  business  matters  left  unfinished  by 
the  hasty  departure. 

"I  leave  all  my  affairs  to  Mr.  Morgan,"  Lan- 
don stiffly  said.  "I  am  under  a  lifelong  debt  of 
gratitude  for  the  kindness  of  yourself  and  Mrs. 
Melville  in  my  illness. 

"As  to  my  social  name  and  fame, — I  care  noth- 
ing,— for  the  roads  which  all  lead  to  Rome, — also 
lead  out  again  to  that  wide,  wide  world,  in  which 
I  can  find  peace  or  strife, — rest  or  torment, — just 
as  God  wills!" 

In  answer  to  the  Consul  General's  flat  demand, 
Landon  curtly  remarked:  "My  movements  are 
uncertain!  I  go — whither — /  know  not — /  care 


AT  THE  FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI.         219 

not!  I  am  now  a  free  American  citizen,  and, — 
the  wide  world  is  my  home!" 

Melville's  weak  indecision  alone  prevented  him 
from  pouring  out  his  troubled  heart,  but  the  "fac- 
chini"  bustling  off  the  luggage  broke  off  the  last 
tete  a  tete,  and  so, — Melville  left  his  friend, 
weakly  guarding  the  Minister's  pusillanimous 
confidences,  and  the  last  door  was  closed  upon 
Sidney  Landon's  Roman  life ! 

True  it  was  that  Rawdon  Clark  and  Robert 
Brandon,  junketing  at  the  American  Club, — 
laughed  with  good  reason,  over  Sidney  Landon's 
abrupt  retreat ! 

"Dropped  at  the  first  flash  of  the  gun,"  gaily 
said  the  capitalist. 

"Now  for  a  clear  field!  This  jackanapes  is  out 
of  the  way !  When  Agnes  gives  me  her  plighted 
word,  my  way  to  the  Senate  is  open,  my  passport 
to  the  home  circles  I  must  enter, — and, — your 
Consul  Generalcy  here  is  assured — the  moment  I 
am  elected  to  the  higher  house !  So,  now,  follow 
up  Miss  Hawthorn's  movements  to-day !  /  want 
no  last  emotional  interview!  Maspero  is  watch- 
ing all  at  the  Consulate  and  will  dog  this  fellow's 
movements;  I  shall  be  waiting  here  at  the  Club 


220  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

till  midnight!  Then,  when  he  is  gone,  we  will 
give  Miss  Agnes  the  whole  story!  I  have  the  let- 
ters now  from  America  which  will  rouse  the  last 
spark  of  womanhood  in  her  heart !  She  will  de- 
spise a  man  both  seducer,  fugitive  and  coward !" 

Captain  Landon  left  the  Eveless  Paradise  be- 
fore sundown  with  the  unconcerned  air  of  a  tour- 
ist seeking  a  brief  run  in  new  pastures. 

His  perfunctory  and  careless  adieux  had  de- 
ceived all  in  Rome  save  the  Melvilles  and  the 
secretly  hostile  Minister.  No  one  but  the  faithful 
Morgan  was  to  be  at  the  station  at  the  time  of  his 
midnight  departure  and  both  Grimes  and  Hatton, 
respecting  his  wishes,  had  gone  out  on  their  far- 
winging  search  for  new  note  book  padding. 

Alone  in  a  little  trattoria  outside  the  walls,  Sid- 
ney Landon  anxiously  awaited  the  hour  of  his 
meeting  with  Mrs.  Melville.  It  was  the  last 
chord  in  his  heart  to  snap — the  only  tie  binding 
him  to  the  graceful  and  spirited  woman  whom  he 
had  loved  in  spite  of  fate.  The  matron's  offered 
championship  touched  his  heart,  and,  yet,  when 
the  pale  moonlight  struggled  with  the  somber 
shadows  of  the  old  Roman  streets,  and  the  bells 
of  San  Vincenzio  tolled  nine,  he  had  found  no 


AT  THE   FOUNTAIN   OF  TREVI.          221 

words  of  farewell  for  the  one  woman  who  had 
vowed  herself  his  defender.  Gertrude  Melville's 
loyal  bravery  had  stirred  his  heart  to  its  utmost 
depths. 

There  were  broken  gleams  lighting  the  somber 
walls  of  the  Palazzo  Poli, — as  Captain  Landon, 
wrapped  in  a  cloak,  his  features  shadowed  with 
an  Italian  hat,  approached  the  magnificent  basin 
of  the  Fontana  di  Trevi. 

His  restless  heart  was  soothed  by  the  dashing 
floods  pouring  down  over  the  massive  rockwork, 
where  bearded  Father  Neptune  lorded  it  over  the 
shimmering  pool  reflecting  the  silvery  stars 
of  night.  Health  and  Fertility,  half  hidden  in 
their  riches,  gazed  out  upon  the  tranquil  night 
blessing  the  crystal  flood  still  gurgling  through 
Agrippa's  subterranean  channel.  The  romance 
of  the  old  lingered  around  the  hallowed  parting 
place  of  generations  of  lovers. 

The  spring  night  was  soft  and  balmy.  Whis- 
pering lovers  were  gathered  now  around  the 
great  basin, — in  all  the  tender  thrills  of  a  last 
farewell, — invoking  the  friendly  spirit  of  the 
Aqua  Virgo,  and,  watching  with  tear-stained  eyes 
their  silver  offerings  disappear  in  the  darkened 


•:•:•:  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

waters  wherein  the  broken  reflection  of  the  moon 
danced  fitfully. 

Mustachiod  gens  d'armes.  cloaked  and  with 
folded  arms, — silently  peered  out  from  tinder 
their  laced  chapeaux  at  the  world  wanderers, — 
the  crowding  beggars, — the  self  projecting  blat- 
ant British  tourists, — and  the  nervous  Americans 
"doing  Rome  on  a  gallop!*' 

With  a  beating  heart,  Captain  Landon  thread- 
ed the  crowd,  until  a  soft  hand  was  lightly  laid 
upon  his  arm.  He  recognized  in  a  moment  the 
svelte  figure  of  the  gallant-hearted  Gertrude  Mel- 
ville. 

But  he  knew  not  the  tall  and  stately  form 
shrouded  in  deep  black,  which  hovered  at  the 
lady's  side. 

"Hasten"  whispered  Gertrude.  "/  have  much 
to  say  to  you!" 

Sidney  Landon  paused,  and  drew  a  silver  coin 
from  his  pocket.  "I  must  invoke  the  spirit  of  the 
fountain.  Do  you  the  same!" 

And  then  two  gleaming  coins  disappeared  un- 
der the  cool  waves  now  rushing  onward  to  their 
triple  outlets. 

The  laughing  waters  danced  away  to  the  Piazza 


AT  THE  FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI.         223 

di  Spagna, — the  far  off  Piazzi  Navona,  and  the 
Piazza  Farnese, — but,  as  the  two  turned  away, 
the  stately  Niobe  following  them,  suddenly  ex- 
tended a  graceful  arm  and  a  third  coin  flashed  in 
the  pale  moonlight. 

Landon  stopped  not  to  admire  the  somber  mag- 
nificence of  the  great  cascade  whose  splendors  re- 
call Hadrian,  Pope  Nicholas  V.  and  a  noble  line 
of  historic  art  lovers. 

In  a  shadowed  angle,  covered  by  the  frowning 
walls  of  the  Palazzo  Poli, — with  bated  breath, — 
Gertrude  Melville  told  the  excited  soldier  of  the 
cowardly  slanders  torturing  all  semblance  of 
truth  from  the  adventures  on  the  Appian  way. 

The  stately  figure  lingered  a  few  paces  apart 
until  a  persistent  beggar  finally  drove  the  woman- 
ly watcher  for  shelter  to  the  side  of  Landon  and 
Gertrude. 

It  took  all  the  soldier's  menacing  promptness  to 
frighten  off  the  bent  figure  of  the  bearded  mendi- 
cant wrapped  in  a  tattered  coat! 

"We  must  hasten!  /  have  more  to  tell  you!" 
anxiously  whispered  Gertrude  Melville,  as  they 
watched  the  sullen  beggar  scuttle  away. 

Once  around  the  corner  of  the  piazza.,  the  beg- 


224  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

gar  spy  leaped  into  a  waiting  carriage !  "Here's 
news  to  wring  more  gold  out  of  Rawdon  Clark," 
muttered  Maspero,  "or, — to  sate  my  revenge 
against  this  petit-maitre  Melville. 

"Per  Bacco,  the  handsome  wifely  nurse  steals 
out  like  a  'femme  galante'  to  say  addio  to  her  sol- 
dier lover !  This  is  rich  news!  I  will  keep  it — till 
fit  to  sell,  then  Clark  shall  pay, — and — Melville 
know  that  he  has  been  both  betrayed  and  dis- 
graced !  But,  who  the  devil  is  the  confidante! 

"Too  large  for  that  Rollings  worth  gadabout, 
— it  can't  be  Emilia  or  Lucia, — she  would  not 
dare  to  bring  her  own  servants.  Perhaps  some 
sewing  woman — or  some  American  friend  who 
has  her  own  veiled  amourettes!  Basta!  We  are 
safe !  The  boy  will  track  him  down  to  the  station. 

"The  handsome  heiress,  Miss  Million,  is  at  the 
Costanzi — fast  enough!  For  she  has  been  ill, 
locked  behind  closed  doors,  all  the  afternoon !" 

And  so,  secure  in  the  presence  of  his  office  mes- 
senger, left  behind  to  follow  the  unsuspecting 
Captain  to  the  train,  Maspero  returned  to  his  own 
lair,  so  as  to  report  to  Rawdon  Clark  at  mid- 
night ! 

"Cospctto!     I  would  have  liked  to  have  lin- 


TWO  GLEAMING   COINS  DISAPPEARED  UNDER  THE  COOL 
WAVES.— Page  222. 


AT  THE  FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI.         225 

gered — but, — the  fretful  fool  advanced  harshly 
upon  me !  False  beard  and  wig  would  not  stand 
a  tussle — and, — a  discovery  now  would  ruin  all. 

The  clock  on  San  Vincenzio  tolled  eleven  be- 
fore Gertrude  Melville  had  ceased  her  disclosures. 
She  started  suddenly,  an  innocent  Cinderella.  "I 
must  leave  you,"  she  fearfully  said.  "I  have  my 
ball  dress  hidden  under  these  dark  robes!  My 
husband  thinks  that  I  am  at  the  Princess  Contar- 
ini's  soiree.  Do  not  attempt  to  follow  us.  Our 
carriage  waits  down  there  before  the  church. 

"Remember, — if  you  would  repay  my  care  of 
you  when  you  lay  helpless, — swear  to  me  that  you 
will  never  divulge  the  name  of  Agnes  Hawthorn, 
— as  the  woman  whose  life  you  saved  on  the  Via 
Appia !  I  will  watch  for  your  sake — for  her  sake 
— over  these  slanderers  here.  My  husband  must 
protect  your  honor.  He  knows  how  nobly  you 
have  acted  to  save  Agnes'  name  from  the  rending 
fangs  of  these  human  ghouls.  But  those  who  are 
fighting  you  from  ambush  here, — have  some  sin- 
ister purpose!" 

Captain  Landon  grasped  both  the  fair  woman's 
hands.  "I  take  but  one  heart  sorrow  away  with 
me!  The  one  woman  on  earth  whom  I  could 

15 


226  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

have  loved, — is  as  far  from  me  now  as  the  stars 
above  the  sordid  earth  below!  Tell  her  that 
though  I  shall  never  see  her  again,  I  loved  her, — 
but  Fate  was  against  me!  But,  Thank  God — I 
can  prove  to  her,  in  life  and  death, — I  will  be 
mute  and  silent ! 

"Her  fair  fame  shall  be  preserved!  Let  them 
go  on  and  slander  me!  I  go  out  on  my  lonely 
way!  But  I  carry  her  dear  face  graven  in  my 
heart,  and, — /  will  never  forget  her!" 

A  choking  sob  made  Landon  start !  The  stately 
woman  in  black  was  standing  with  averted  eyes — 
her  face  covered  with  her  hands ! 

Gertrude  Melville's  voice  thrilled  his  every 
fiber  as  she  said  : 

"Confide  in  me!  There  is  yet  time!  Recall 
your  resignation !" 

Sidney  Landon  was  swayed  as  the  storm 
shakes  the  pine.  "No," — he  sadly  cried.  "Her 
wealth  fences  her  from  me  with  golden  bars! 
And, — Agnes  Hawthorn  shall  not  stoop  to  con- 
quer! There  is  a  pride  of  wealth!  There  is  also 
a  pride  of  poverty!  It  is  too  late !  Listen — Count 
upon  me,  in  life  and  death !  If  there  is  any  positive 
slander, — if  this  low  cabal  penetrates  our  inno- 


AT  THE  FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI.          227 

cent  secret, — if  there  is  the  name  we  both  love  at- 
tached to  this  alleged  'intrigue,  only  give  Morgan 
a  letter  for  me, — he  will  know  where  I  am — and 
I  will  come  back  from  the  ends  of  the  earth! 
And — now — God  be  with  you, — my  sweet  sis- 
ter!" 

He  stooped  and  kissed  the  trembling  woman  on 
her  forehead,  "Go  now, — there  is  no  time  to 
lose!  I  shall  watch  you  safely  to  your  carriage." 

In  a  sad  silence,  the  three  sought  the  darkened 
angle  where  the  carriage  waited. 

The  half  disclosures  of  a  half  knowledge  had 
driven  Sidney  Landon  into  a  tossing  sea  of  un- 
rest! 

He  stood,  hat  in  hand,  as  the  carriage  turned ! 
It  halted,  a  slender  arm  was  extended !  He  cov- 
ered the  trembling  hand  with  passionate  kisses, 
and  instinctively  took  the  handkerchief  and  the 
knot  of  flowers  which  were  clasped  within  the 
timidly  extended  fingers ! 

And  then — the  carriage  moved  swiftly  off, 
bearing  away  the  innocent  truant  from  the  Pa- 
lazzo Vecchio. 

Captain  Landon  turned  with  a  smothered 
groan, — and  hailed  the  first  passing  carriage. 


228  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

His  brain  was  still  throbbing  with  the  madden- 
ing disclosures,  and  his  pulses  bounding  with  the 
timidly  hinted  possibilities  of  a  return ! 

"Never!"  he  sternly  said,  as  he  wrung  Mor- 
gan's hands  and  leaped  into  the  waiting  train.  "If 
I  had  only  known  this  before — but, — it  is  too  late 
now.  My  resignation  is  on  the  sea!  The  Egyp- 
tian War  Ministry  has  my  acceptance!  I  will 
bury  my  regrets  in  the  Soudan!  And,  dear  old 
Swasey  has  already  taken  my  passage  from  Mar- 
seilles!" 

Three  hours  later,  at  Orvieto,  he  awoke  with  a 
start,  and,  suddenly  drew  forth  the  little  offering 
which  he  had  thrust  in  his  bosom. 

There  was  a  delicate  bunch  of  rich  Parma  vio- 
lets, a  filmy  lace  handkerchief, — and  knotted  in 
the  corner — a  slender  golden  ring.  He  sprang  up, 
and  by  the  light  of  a  fusee  read,  within  the  little 
circlet  the  word  "Agnes." 

His  heart  gave  one  mighty  throb,  as  he  remem- 
bered the  veiled  Niobe,  the  stately  goddess  of  the 
night. 

"My  God !  Was  this  her  mute  farewell !"  He 
slept  with  the  delicate  token  resting  on  his  wear- 
ied heart. 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  229 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE  HARVEST  OF  ONE  WEARY  YEAR. 

As  the  train  rolled  into  the  station  at  Nice — 
Captain  Sidney  Landon  started  to  find  General 
Rufus  Hatcher  and  Consul  Swasey,  both  there 
awaiting  him. 

He  had  recovered  his  composure  since  the  dis- 
covery of  the  golden  token  now  more  precious  to 
him  than  the  ring  with  which  the  proud  Venetian 
Doge  made  the  Adriatic  his  bride. 

When  he  had  seen  the  lights  of  Rome  sink 
down  in  the  Campagna  behind  him,  he  had  wrath- 
fully  murmured,  "Banished  from  Rome !  What's 
banished, — but  set  free,  from  daily  contact  with 
the  things  I  loathe !" 

And,  now,  he  recognized  the  soft  strategy  of 
Gertrude  Melville. 

"Dear  Heart!"  he  thought.  "She  fain  would 
have  the  General  persuade  me  to  return !  Never! 
Jacta  alea  est !" 

And,  yet,  as  he  recalled  the  stately  Niobe,  he 


230  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

heard  again  that  choking  sob, — the  fond  self-be- 
trayal of  a  woman  whom  he  now  knew  he  loved 
beyond  all  of  Eve's  graceful  daughters ! 

With  a  modulated  courtesy,  Landon  held  his 
inner  soul,  until  after  his  establishment  at  the 
Hotel  Chauvain.  General  Hatcher  was  dragged 
away  to  a  dinner  of  the  flagship. 

"Remember,  Landon,  you  are  to  give  me  one 
night,  to-night,  my  last!  I  must  take  home  some 
explanation  of  your  sky-rocket  path  in  life !  Now, 
my  boy, — no  heroics!  I've  just  had  telegrams 
both  from  Melville  and  his  fairy  wife.  Also  a 
last  joint  appeal  from  Grimes  and  Hatton !" 

Sidney  Landon  bowed  his  head  before  this  evi- 
dence of  friendships  that  followed  on!  With  a 
quiet  smile -of  triumph  the  silver-haired  Consul 
haled  Landon  away  to  his  office. 

"Here  we  are,  my  meteoric  young  American 
friend!  You  are  just  such  a  fly-away  as  your 
gallant  father !" 

In  the  seclusion  of  the  private  office, — the  old 
Consul  handed  Landon  his  letters  and  telegrams. 
"There  you  are,  sir!  When  you  are  done  I  will 
have  a  few  words  with  you !  I'll  take  a  stroll  on 
the  Beau  Rivage  till  you  digest  these  important 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  231 

things !  You  must  listen  to  the  General's  last  ap- 
peal!" 

The  first  telegrams  he  read  were  from  the 
Egyptian  War  Ministry  and  they  confirmed  his 
appointment,  and  suggested  his  coming  On,  via 
Brindisi,  to  avoid  the  espionage  of  the  English 
authorities  at  Malta. 

The  words,  "Expedition  ready  and  awaiting 
your  command,"  set  his  soldier's  heart  proudly 
beating. 

The  Messagerie  Maritimes'  dispatches  reserv- 
ing steamer  accommodations  at  will  was  hastily 
thrown  aside,  and  he  tore  open  the  last.  His  eyes 
lit  up  with  a  strange  fire  as  he  read  Gertrude  Mel- 
ville's dispatch: 

"Do  not  leave  Nice  until  you  receive  my  letter. 
You  will  understand  why!  The  ring  will  ex- 
plain." 

He  started  up  to  seek  the  Bureau  de  Tele- 
graphes,  and  then  remembered  that  he  held  the 
reputations  of  two  women  now  dependent  upon 
his  prudence. 

When  General  Hatcher,  escaping  from  the 
fleet,  opened  his  batteries  upon  the  young  soldier, 


232  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

he  was  astonished  at  the  buoyant  brightness  of 
the  young  man's  demeanor. 

And,  nodding  his  approval,  the  courtly  Swasey 
listened  with  joy  to  Landon's  promise  to  remain  a 
few  days  in  Nice  and  think  over  all  the  General's 
newly  fledged  arguments. 

The  soldier's  singular  cheerfulness  gave  new 
hopes  to  the  two  amicable  old  conspirators,  who 
brought  right  and  left  flank  batteries  to  bear  upon 
him. 

The  one  plead  with  him  to  re-enter  the  Army, 
— and  the  other — to  recall  his  resignation  from 
the  Consular  service  or  to  ask  a  transfer  to  the 
purely  diplomatic  career. 

But  loyally  had  Arnold  Swasey  guarded  the 
secret  of  the  Egyptian  appointment,  first  tendered 
to  Landon  through  him,  as  a  lifelong  friend  of 
the  gallant  and  accomplished  Ferik  Pasha — Lieu- 
tenant General  Charles  P.  Stone. 

Long  after  the  elders  had  sought  their  rest, 
Sidney  Landon  poured  his  heart  out  in  a  letter  to 
Gertrude  Melville.  He  could  devise  no  safe  way 
of  sending  it  so  as  to  guard  Agnes  Hawthorn's 
secret,  but  to  send  it  as  a  sealed  Consular  Dis- 
patch to  Edwin  Morgan. 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  233 

He  dared  not  write  to  the  heiress  whose  golden 
token  still  rested  upon  his  heart,  but  when  he  had 
finished  a  letter  whose  veiled  suggestion  was 
meant  in  every  line  for  the  Lady  of  the  Violets, 
he  enclosed  a  ring  which  had  been  a  companion  in 
many  a  dangerous  fray. 

"This  ring  was  one  of  my  beloved  and  unfor- 
gotten  mother's.  Give  it  to  my  little  playmate, 
and  let  her  not  forget  the  companion  of  so  many 
happy  hours.  I  will  keep  the  other,  and  its  return 
to  you  for  the  giver  will  only  be  the  silent  proof 
that  my  life  is  done!  But,  remember,  that  we 
parted  at  the  Fountain  of  Trevi, — under  its  mys- 
tic spell!  God  be  with  you  both  till  we  meet 
again." 

Under  the  protection  of  the  Consular  seal,  with 
a  note  to  the  watchful  Morgan, — Landon  well 
knew  that  it  would  reach  its  destination !  "And, 
so  Agnes  will  know,"  he  mused,  "that  I  have 
recognized  her  token, — and  respect  the  silence 
which  I  am  now  bounden  to !" 

While  the  three  men  sat  in  council  at  Nice, 
Rawdon  Clark  and  Signior  Jacopo  Maspero  craft- 
ily conferred  at  the  Quirinale.  "Who  the  devil 
could  this  woman  be,  the  one  whom  he  met?" 
fruitlessly  demanded  the  baffled  capitalist 


234  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 


matters  it  to  you?"  sulkily  rejoined 
Maspero.  "Your  inamorata  was  in  camera,  — 
surely  locked  up,  —  that  we  know,  and,  —  your 
only  enemy  in  Rome,  Madame  Melville,  was 
away  at  the  Contarini's  ball  !  So  the  maids  told 
me  !  Of  course,  if  you  wish  it,  I  can  trace  out  the 
intrigue,  and  find  who  was  his  only  friend! 
Don't  be  surprised  at  any  disclosure.  Woman's 
eternal  deviltries,  —  infidelities,  and  vagaries,  are 
the  only  book  of  Life!" 

"Stop  your  damned  nonsense,"  roughly  cried 
Clark.  "Go  ahead  and  find  out  !  I  will  pay  you  !" 

He  was  in  a  towering  rage,  for  Madame  Myra 
Brandon  had  reported  to  him  that  Miss  Agnes 
Hawthorn  had  received  the  full  disclosure  of 
Dora  Prindle's  venom-filled  letter  unmoved  and 
in  a  stony  silence. 

All  that  the  heiress  would  vouchsafe  was  the 
cold  remark,  "What  matters  it  about  this  man? 
He  has  passed  out  of  our  lives  !  He  has  departed 
from  Rome!  And,  /  —  will  leave  next  week  for 
Vienna,  my  accident  has  only  delayed  the  long 
settled  trip." 

Both  suitor  and  spy  were  sorely  smitten  by  this 
sudden  blow. 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  235 

To  Myra  Brandon  it  meant  the  cessation  of 
Agnes  Hawthorn's  golden  generosity — and, 
moreover,  the  end  of  Rawdon  Clark's  concealed 
subsidies. 

To  the  angered  capitalist  it  meant  a  long  chase 
after  the  beautiful  woman,  whose  dearest  girl- 
hood friend  was  now  the  wife  of  the  American 
Minister  at  Vienna. 

"She  will  be  swept  away  from  me,"  he  growled 
— "the  winter's  work  is  lost, — or  it  will  have  to 
be  all  done  over  again !" 

He  trembled  at  the  idea  of  a  definite  rejection 
— and, — yet, — the  golden  bird  of  Paradise  was 
spreading  its  wings. 

As  he  went  home,  Clark  decided  to  have  Rob- 
ert Brandon  make  the  full  disclosure  of  the  now 
open  secrets  of  the  rencontre  of  Agnes  Hawthorn 
and  Captain  Landon  on  the  Via  Appia. 

"I'll  pop  in  pat,  then,  with  my  proposal — and, 
— she  may  see  the  prudence  of  marrying  me! 
The  only  thing  is  to  watch  the  mail  and  see  that 
this  puppy  is  not  writing  to  her!  I've  fixed  the 
thing  with  the  Head  Porter  of  the  Hotel  Cos- 
tanzi. 

"Myra  Brandon  will  see  every  letter  before  she 


236  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

gets  them.  And, — Jacopo  Maspero  will  watch 
the  private  mail  of  the  Consul  General. 

"Confound  this  Landon !  He  was  far  too  inti- 
mate with  Madame  Gertrude.  If  Missy  goes 
down  there  for  a  visit,  it  will  show  that  the  sly 
Melville  is  the  go  between!  Great  Heavens! 
What  a  fool  I've  been  to  forget.  I  must  watch 
Landon  at  Nice  and  see  that  he  does  not  sneak 
off  to  join  Agnes  Hawthorn  in  Vienna !  And, — 
dare  I  follow  her  over  there?  Wait,  my  lady, — 
wait  till  I  have  you,  under  my  thumb!" 

It  boded  ill  for  the  success  of  Rawdon  Clark's 
Intelligence  Bureau  that  Agnes  Hawthorn  was 
hidden  the  whole  afternoon  and  evening  of  the 
day,  when  the  rporning's  disclosures  had  shocked 
her,  with  Gertrude  Melville.  "That's  the  one 
place  where  I  can  not  control  her  actions," 
growled  Clark,  hidden  at  the  American  Club  and 
receiving  Maspero's  furtive  messages. 

Captain  Sidney  Landon's  behavior  was  an 
enigma  to  the  two  seniors,  when  upon  the  third 
day  of  his  arrival  he  fell  again  into  the  dull  dejec- 
tion which  had  marked  his  last  days  in  Rome. 

'And,  yet,  a  wolfish,  haggard  anxiety  burned  in 
his  gleaming  eyes !  All  the  newly  founded  hopes 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  237 

of  General  Hatcher  were  quickly  buried — when 
the  soldier  sternly  announced  his  irrevocable  de- 
cision to  abandon  the  army  forever. 

And,  so,  in  sadness  and  sorrow,  the  old  veteran 
made  his  way  Parisward,  cursing  all  regimental 
mysteries  and  foolish  boys!  "It's  some  bit  of 
devilish  woman  work,  I'll  swear !  I  wish  to  God 
there  was  not  a  woman  in  the  whole  army." 

But  Consul  Swasey  alone  knew  that  some  new 
bitter  grief  had  choked  the  dawning  sunlight  out 
of  the  young  man's  heart. 

Hour  by  hour,  while  waiting  for  the  answer  to 
a  letter  just  dispatched,  heavily  corded  and  sealed 
with  the  inviolate  seal  of  the  Consulate,  Sidney 
Landon  pored  over  the  last  womanly  appeal  of 
Gertrude  Melville.  He  read  again  these  words  of 
doom: 

"Agnes  has  come  to  me  to  hide  her  sorrows  in 
our  home!  She  is  surrounded  with  sycophants 
and  flatterers, — with  false  friends,  and  harassed 
by  an  importunate  wooer.  You  now  have  your 
honor, — your  peace  of  mind, — perhaps  your  fu- 
ture happiness  in  your  own  hands!  I  have  not 
seen  the  letter,  but  Agnes  has  told  me  the  whole 
story  of  Ethel  Raynor, — of  her  death, — of  her 
husband's  self  sacrifice, — of  your  hasty  departure 
from  the  regiment, — of  your  sudden  resignation ! 


238  CAPTAIN   LANDON. 

And,  now,  if  you  would  prove  to  the  woman 
who  might  have  loved  you  and  blessed  your  life, 
that  a  blasted  home,  a  woman's  wrecked  life,  a 
gallant  husband's  betrayed  honor,  have  not  un- 
fitted you  for  an  honest  woman's  love, — then, — 
come  back!  Come  at  once!  You  can  tell  me 
the  facts!  You  stand  now  at  the  parting  of  the 
ways!  If  you  are  innocent,  you  will  come!" 

Sidney  Landon's  face  was  seamed  with  thought 
as  he  waited  for  the  response  which  was  to  de- 
cide his  whole  career  in  life. 

He  had,  with  his  own  hands,  deposited  in  the 
mails  the  officially  sealed  envelope  which  con- 
tained the  one  appeal  possible  to  the  heart  of  the 
woman  whom  he  now  madly  longed  to  crush  to 
his  bosom.  He  rejoiced  that  she  had  taken  refuge 
with  the  Melvilles. 

"Safe  in  that  home,  I  can  write  her,  and  let 
her  judge  between  the  sorrows  of  a  dead  past, 
and  the  infamous  lies  of  the  woman  fiend  who 
has  followed  on  my  path  for  years!" 

Too  well  he  knew  whose  hand  had  dealt  the 
blow,  but  how,  and  why,  in  what  form,  he  knew 
not, — he  only  yearned  to  be  called  back  to  give 
the  key  of  the  past  to  the  one  whose  withered  vio- 
lets still  lay  upon  his  heart ! 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  239 

After  a  heart  struggle,  he  had  decided  to  write 
to  Agnes  Hawthorn,  and  then  leave  the  final  de- 
cision with  her! 

In  plain  words,  he  briefly  told  her  of  his  ap- 
pointment in  the  Egyptian  Army,  for  the  desper- 
ate service  in  the  Soudan  and  the  Abyssinian 
campaign. 

"I  sought  it  to  forget  you, — your  face,  your 
smile,  your  haunting  presence. 

"Only  if  entitled  to  know  that  my  whole,  hon- 
est heart  lies  at  your  feet,  can  you  ask  me  to  tell 
the  story  of  the  past!  There  is  but  one  woman 
I  would  tell  it  to, — to  the  woman  who  is  to  be 
my  wife!  I  waive  the  question  of  your  riches, 
to  save  my  honor,  to  leave  at  least  my  memory 
white  in  your  stainless  heart!  And  so, — if  you 
write  me  'Comef  I  will  come  to  you!  I  can  re- 
turn to  Rome,  and  then  go  on  to  Egypt  via  Brin- 
disi.  I  should  wait  until  you  have  heard  all 
from  the  only  one  who  watches  over  the  graves 
of  two  who  suffered  with  me!  It  will  take  time! 
I  ask  you  not  to  plight  your  word !  Only  to  say, 
'Sidney!  I  will  trust  you  until  the  truth  shall 
deepen  that  trust  into  the  certainty  of  my  inno- 
cence! I  will  make  the  Abyssinian  campaign, 
as  bound  in  honor  now,  do  a  soldier's  duty,  and 
then  come  back  to  read  my  fate  in  your  dear  eyes ! 
I  will  now  wait  here  one  week  for  your  answer. 
Even  Mrs.  Melville  has  no  right  to  the  unsealing 
of  my  heart!" 


240  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

While  Sidney  Landon,  in  burning  impatience, 
walked  the  shores  of  the  Riviera,  at  Rome,  Jacopo 
Maspero  laughed  in  a  silent  glee! 

"This  is  surely  my  harvest  year,"  he  gaily 
cried. 

The  postman  laughed  as  he  pocketed  Maspero's 
hundred-lire  note  for  bringing  all  the  mails  for 
the  Melvilles  surreptitiously  to  a  little  wine  shop 
fronting  the  Palazzo  Vecchio. 

Maspero  chuckled  at  the  possession  of  a  set  of 
the  Consular  seals  of  all  the  subconsulates  in 
Italy,  to  reseal  the  correspondence  sent  on 
through  the  Consulate  General. 

It  had  paid  him  well  to  have  one  made,  also — 
so  as  to  open  and  reseal  Consul  Swasey's  letters 
to  the  dilettante  Melville. 

A  past  master  of  the  art,  the  private  seal  of 
Sidney  Landon  was  easily  taken  off  with  a  bread 
paste  impression,  and  this,  in  plaster,  gave  a 
matrix  to  close  again  the  document  upon  which 
the  soldier's  life  happiness  hung! 

In  half  an  hour,  Rawdon  Clark  was  possessed 
of  the  copy !  The  millionaire's  brow  drew  down 
in  the  scowl  of  murder  as  he  said,  "You  are  sure 
Morgan  can  not  detect  this  letter  opening?" 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  241 

"7  pride  myself,"  smiled  Maspero,  "upon  an 
accomplishment  which  is  hereditary  in  the 
family!" 

"Then,"  deliberately  said  Clark,  "there  is  five 
thousand  francs  cash  for  you  to  trap  her  answer, 
— this  golden-haired  fool !  /  see  it  all!  Gertrude 
Melville  has  been  Landon's  mistress,  and — hus- 
band and  wife  work  together  for  profit.  They 
covet  Agnes  Hawthorn's  fortune! 

"Now,  Emilia  and  Lucia  must  watch  both  the 
Melville  woman  and  my  shy  bird !  Her  answer 
must  fall  into  my  hands!" 

"Safe  enough"  laughed  the  scoundrelly 
Italian.  "My  postman  will  catch  it  at  the  office. 
If  I  do  not  get  it  there !  The  two  women  servants 
will  do  their  work!  They  handle  the  letters." 

"The  cash  is  yours!"  gruffly  cried  Clark. 
"Damn  that  Landon!  I  hope  that  he  will  feel 
what  I  feel  now!" 

Jacopo  Maspero  laughed  over  the  love-lorn 
schemer's  agony  of  jealousy — as  he  bade  Emilia 
and  Lucia  do  their  devil's  work,  when  Morgan 
glided  in  to  the  family  apartment  with  the  en- 
closures. 

Arthur  Melville,  now  wrapped  up  in  his  liquid 


16 


242  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

greens  and  yellows,  had  forgotten  all  his  official 
cares  and  again — Maspero, — as  of  yore, — lorded 
it  in  the  Consulate. 

By   midnight,    the   Italian    scoundrel    was   at 
Rawdon  Clark's  bedside. 

"I  have  the  letter,"  he  said.    "Here  is  a  copy 
of  it!" 

"You  must  give  me  the  original,"  sharply  cried 
the  excited  Clark. 

"Softly,  softly,"  brutally  answered  Maspero. 
"It  is  a  State's  prison  offense  to  steal  a  letter! 
/  will  not  go  to  the  galleys  even  for  you!  I  will 
open  it, — read  it  to  you, — show  it  to  you — and 
give  you  the  copy !  Then  I  will  seal  it  up  again, 
and  keep  it  for  my  protection.  This  fool  will  be 
far  over  the  seas  soon!  If  the  loss  is  ever  dis- 
covered, I  can  have  the  letter  some  months  after- 
wards, discovered  in  some  out-of-the-way  place! 
I  will  hide  it  back — even  for  years, — but,  I  will 
not  go  to  the  galleys  for  you!" 
"Give  me  the  letter"  yelled  Clark. 
"Money  first!"  sternly  said  Maspero,  holding 
the  letter  and  copy  in  one  hand,  and  a  glittering 
knife  in  the  other. 

With  a  curse — Clark  handed  over  the  money. 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  243 

"You  see  how  she  loves  him,"  gloatingly  said 
the  Italian  roue.  "I  told  you  all  women  were 
alike! 

"Better  go  in  and  amuse  yourself  with  the 
Consul's  dainty  wife;  she  is  really  the  gamer 
intrigant  of  the  two!  Don't  you  see,  if  you  get 
her  in  your  power,  she  will  help  you  to  gain  this 
golden-haired  American  Borgia's  favor!" 

He. slowly  backed  out,  warned  by  Clark's  eyes. 

The  half-crazed  Croesus  read  the  words: 

"Come  to  me — Sidney!  Come — and  you  will 
find  my  heart  open  to  you!  If  you  clear  away 
this  mystery,  you  will  know  that  my  heart  has 
been  yours — from  the  first." 

There  was  the  clear,  womanly  signature, 
"Agnes  Hawthorn." 

But  three  sentences  were  added  below ! 

"I  will  wait  for  one  week  for  your  appearance ! 
//  you  do  not  come, — I  shall  leave  Rome  and  all 
its  shams  and  lying  deceits  behind  me — but,  with 
a  heavy  heart !  /  will  have  lost  my  whole  faith  in 
manhood!" 

Ten  days  later,  Sidney  Landon  gazed  moodily 
over  the  quarter  of  the  steamer  "Sphinx,"  at 
the  green  billows  of  the  Gulf  of  Lyons,  and — 


244  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Miss  Agnes  Hawthorn, — pale-faced  and  haughty 
— was  watching  the  gay  Viennese  crowds  upon 
the  Kaiser  platz. 

The  stolen  letter  had  sundered  two  loving 
hearts!  With  cautious  scoundrelism, — the  Hon- 
orable Rawdon  Clark  nursed  his  secret  rage 
smoothly  in  Rome!  He  had  followed  up  Sidney 
Landon's  every  movement, — day  by  day, — until 
he  sailed  for  the  land  of  the  Pyramids. 

With  a  sudden  spasm  of  indignation, — Clark 
now  shut  his  purse  strings  to  the  exuberant  Mrs. 
Myra  Brandon. 

"By  Heavens!  I  believe  you  bungled  it,  you 
clumsy  fool,"  he  said.  "You  and  your  goggle- 
eyed  husband  can  now  shift  for  yourselves!" 

No  one  but  himself  knew  of  the  stony  com- 
posure with  which  Agnes  Hawthorn  had  received 
his  earnestly  worded  offer  of  marriage. 

"Let  it  be  just  as  if  I  had  not  heard  it!"  she 
calmly  said.  "Come  back  to  me  in  a  year, — and 
tell  me  the  same  story!  If  you  are  the  same, — 
if  7  am  different, — I  may  spare  you  the  pain  of 
a  refusal,  but  I  am  world-weary  now,  and, — I 
must  and  will  be  alone !" 

"There  goes  my  Senatorial  campaign,"  growled 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  245 

Clark,  who  dared  not  press  his  fate  further,  and 
lose  the  golden-haired  beauty  forever! 

And, — only  Maspero  was  happy  as  he  stole 
out,  at  night,  to  laugh  over  his  dupe  with  the 
velvet-eyed  Emelia,  and  the  full-bosomed  Lucia. 

"Pray  God  to  send  us  another  fool  like  this!" 
he  laughed, — ignorant  that  the  steadfast  Morgan 
was  silently  weaving  the  net  around  the  unfaith- 
ful official! 

And  now —  life  dragged  on  wearily  enough  in 
the  Palazzo  Vecchio! 

"He  was  base  metal!"  sighed  Gertrude  Mel- 
ville, "and  so  he  dared  not  face  the  ruin  he  had 
wrought!  God  forgive  him,  and — God  help 
Agnes,  who  has  lost  all  her  faith  in  man!" 

And,  so — only  the  little  playmate  was  left  to 
mourn  for  the  vanished  man  whose  name  in  the 
clubs  was  now  bandied  as  that  of  the  common 
adventurer  to  whom  the  world  is  but  an  oyster! 

And  far  away,  on  the  burning  sands  of  Egypt, 
a  haggard-eyed  man  pressed  on  to  where  the  fierce 
swordsmen  of  Abyssinia  crouched  like  lions  in 
their  mountain  gorges !  It  was  a  lean  year,  with 
only  a  harvest  of  sorrows. 

The  whole  Roman  community  was  set  agog  by 


246  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

the  leakage  from  the  United  States  Legation  of 
the  cabled  news  of  the  appointment  of  Mr.  Still- 
well  Meacham,  late  of  Princeton  University,  as 
the  new  Vice  Consul  General  of  the  United 
States. 

The  fact  that  the  new  appointee  was  the  favor- 
ite nephew  of  the  Minister  Resident  was  artfully 
concealed  by  that  wily  official,  now  secretly  afraid 
of  being  supplanted  by  Mr.  Rawdon  Clark. 

This  energetic  capitalist, — at  once,  verified  the 
rumor  through  the  delighted  Jacopo  Maspero. 

This  crafty  Italian  duly  presented  his  dupe  and 
employer  with  a  copy  of  the  official  cablegram 
of  the  State  Department. 

Clark  was  lifted  at  once  from  the  dejection 
caused  by  the  indifference  of  the  Philadelphian 
heiress  to  his  suit! 

The  magnificence  of  his  hospitalities  at  the 
Cercle  de  Rome  had  endeared  him  to  the  local 
petite  noblesse,  and,  now,  he  decided  to  vigor- 
ously follow  up  all  the  attacks  upon  the  vanished 
Sidney  Landon. 

Even  the  Marquis  Pallavinci  was  forced  to 
confess  to  Charley  Hollingsworth  that  the  whole 
story  of  Landon's  blackballing  was  now  common 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  247 

property,  backed  with  a  general  denunciation  of 
his  cowardice  in  stealing  away  from  Rome  under 
the  guise  of  a  sick  leave. 

Forrest  Grimes  and  Frank  Hatton  were  even 
forced  to  fight  nightly  battles  at  the  Eveless 
Paradise  over  the  hopeless  cause  of  a  man  who 
had  not  even  dared  to  leave  an  address. 

The  story  of  the  attempt  to  cover  a  Roman 
intrigue  with  the  murder  of  a  poor  unarmed 
peasant, — and  the  imprisonment  of  two  innocent 
carriage  drivers  was  bruited  abroad! 

A  hundred  tongues  were  clacking  away,  "Dove 
la  Donna?" 

Rawdon  Clark  artfully  hid  behind  the  bustling 
Brandon  and  his  now  triumphantly  revengeful 
wife. 

There  was  none  so  poor  as  to  do  reverence  to 
the  memory  of  the  man  who  had  leaped  on  to  the 
position  of  social  favorite,  only  to  fall  in  utter 
disgrace. 

The  American  scandals  of  Landon's  expulsion 
from  the  army  were  also  now  common  property, 
and  Gertrude  Melville  remained, — a  forlorn  hope, 
— the  last  friend  of  the  absent  one,  save  Doctor 


248  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Cesare  Corvini  and  the  imperturbable  Edwin 
Morgan. 

Rawdon  Clark  was  following  his  enemy,  ham- 
mer and  tongs,  and  the  arrival  of  several  anony- 
mous letters  from  different  parts  of  America 
addressed  to  the  United  States  Minister, — the 
Consul  General  and  the  Secretary  of  the  Ameri- 
can club,  completed  the  pyramid  of  obloquy 
heaped  upon  the  memory  of  the  ruined  man! 

Plentifully  accompanied  with  newspaper  slips, 
these  letters  fanned  the  flames  of  scandal  into  a 
furious  conflagration. 

Mr.  Rawdon  Clark  laughed  as  he  carefully 
went  over  duplicates  of  these  documents,  in  the 
safe  retirement  of  his  room. 

"Barker  Bolton  is  a  cool  one,"  he  gaily  cried. 
"No  one  will  ever  find  out  here  that  these  same 
newspaper  articles  are  fictitious." 

The  neat  expedient  of  pasting  headers  cut  from 
Western  journals  on  matter  printed  by  the  "In- 
telligence Bureau"  was  a  stroke  of  genius  worthy 
of  a  Robert  Macaire. 

Resting  content,  now,  with  his  labors, — Clark 
closed  his  campaign  with  having  Mrs.  Myra 
Brandon  send  on  these  apparent  verifications  of 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  249 

Landon's  disgraceful  record  to  the  unhappy 
heiress  in  Vienna. 

"I  will  let  these  things  do  their  quiet  work," 
mused  the  capitalist.  "I  will  send  Mrs.  Brandon 
over  on  a  visit  of  motherly  solicitude  in  a  few 
weeks,  and,  before  the  Legislatures  meet,  I  will 
find  Miss  Agnes  in  the  Tyrol  and  offer  her  what 
few  women  dare  decline — the  proud  place  of  a 
Senator's  wife. 

"When  I  tell  her  that  my  public  career  will 
depend  upon  her,  this  will  shorten  her  year  of 
probation.  At  any  rate,  Mr.  Sidney  Landon,  I 
have  paid  you  off, — and, — with  compound  in- 
terest!" 

There  was  one  fatal  stroke  of  ill  fortune  which 
marvelously  aided  Rawdon  Clark's  plans.  Ger- 
trude Melville  felt  all  a  woman's  resentment  at 
Sidney  Landon  for  leaving  Nice  without  a  single 
word  of  adieu  to  her. 

"I  risked  my  reputation  as  a  woman,  my 
honor  as  a  wife, — to  meet  and  warn  him, — to 
give  him  a  chance  to  meet  his  enemies  with  a 
frank  defense!  I  even  lured  Agnes  Hawthorn 
to  the  Fountain  of  Trevi, — and, — he  covers  his 
retreat  like  a  criminal  fleeing  the  thief  taker !" 


250  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

It  had  been  in  vain  that  Gertrude  Melville  had 
used  all  her  arts  upon  Edwin  Morgan,  whom  her 
husband  vaguely  deemed  a  Consular  spy  in  his 
office. 

The  pale-faced  student  was  only  willing  to  state 
that  he  was  ordered  to  send  all  matters  for  Cap- 
tain Sidney  Landon  to  Consul  Arnold  Swasey 
at  Nice. 

And,  a  personal  appeal  to  that  courteous  old  of- 
ficial only  gave  Mrs.  Melville  the  news  that  Captain 
Landon  had  left  Nice  after  a  sojourn  of  ten  days, 
simply  directing  all  his  mail  to  be  sent  to  "Frey- 
cinet  Freres,"  Bankers,  Marseilles. 

"More  I  can  not  tell  you,"  he  wrote,  "for  I 
have  been  obliged  to  answer  a  cablegram  of  Gen- 
eral Rufus  Hatcher.  'Whereabouts  absolutely 
unknown'  I  can  only  say  that  Landon  left  Nice 
in  a  desperate  and  unhappy  mood! 

"He  seemed  to  wait  for  news  from  Rome  of 
some  character,  and  haunted  the  Post  and  Tele- 
graph up  to  the  moment  of  his  leaving." 

But  neither  Gertrude  Melville  nor  the  unhappy 
Agnes  dreamed  of  any  treachery. 

And,  all  this,  with  the  forged  newspaper  arti- 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  251 

cles,  Gertrude  Melville  sent  on  to  Miss  Agnes 
Hawthorn  at  Ischl  in  Tyrol. 

The  Melvilles  were  leaving  Rome  for  their 
summer  villa  at  Frascati,  and  only  awaited  the 
arrival  of  Vice  Consul  General  Stilwell  Meacham 
to  go  away  for  the  long,  unhealthy  Roman  sea- 
son. Every  turr  of  the  tide  had  aided  Clark's 
adroit  scoundrelism. 

When  Miss  Hawthorn  read  all  these  excerpts 
by  the  rushing  rivers  of  the  Austrian  Alps,  she 
sighed  and  then  tore  the  letters  and  papers  to 
tatters ! 

Throwing  them  in  the  black,  sparkling  moun- 
tain torrent,  she  sighed,  "It  is  true!  He  dared 
not  return  and  face  his  record !" 

She  resolutely  closed  the  gates  of  her  heart  to 
the  past;  she  tried  to  forget  the  shattered  idol, 
and  her  cheek  burned  in  blushes  at  the  shame  of 
her  impulsive  offering  on  that  fateful  night  by 
the  waters  of  Trevi,  of  the  gentle  self  surrender 
of  the  unanswered  letter. 

While  the  two  fond  women  buried  Sidney 
Landon's  memory  away  out  of  their  sight, — 
stung  by  the  treason  of  the  recreant  soldier's  de- 
sertion of  his  social  colors,  Gertrude  Melville  did 


252  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

not  know  the  last  sting  which  had  rent  Agnes 
Hawthorn's  heart! 

For,  the  fair  girl  could  not  bring  herself  to 
own  to  her  dearest  friend  that  she  had  called 
back  to  her  side, — a  man  who  had  scorned  her! 

"Never!"  the  orphaned  girl  swore  in  her  heart ! 
''Death  first, — this  crowning  disgrace  is  my  secret 
alone!" 

And,  the  happiest  man  in  Rome  now  was  Sig- 
nior  Jacopo  Maspero,  fondling  his  hoard  of  yel- 
low French  gold,  the  dirty  wages  of  his  triple 
betrayal. 

"One  more  triumph  is  10  be  mine!"  he  gloated. 
"To  sell  the  news  of  Madame  Melville's  midnight 
assignation  at  the  Trevi  fountain  to  Clark!  He 
will  strike  her  mercilessly — for  she  always  has 
flouted  him! 

"I  will  be  safe,  and  my  cup  of  revenge  will  be 
a  delicious  draught !" 

Maspero  now  exulted  in  the  possession  of  the 
number  of  the  carriage  and  the  coachman's  name, 
used  on  the  fatal  rencontre  by  Trevi's  glittering 
cascade.  He  was  on  the  verge  of  the  discovery 
which  would  have  made  his  fortune  for  life  and 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  253 

given  Agnes  Hawthorn's  reputation  over  to  Raw- 
don  Clark's  cruel  keeping. 

But,  the  brave  American  girl  had  returned 
alone  and  on  foot  to  the  Hotel  Costanzi,  slipping 
in  at  a  side  door,  in  garments  picked  up  by  her 
for  the  Carnival,  a  simple  black  dress  of  the  mid- 
dle class  Roman  women,  with  a  shrouding  veil. 
Brave  at  heart  she  had  been,  in  her  unconfessed 
love  for  the  wanderer  in  Egypt — the  man  who 
had  scorned  to  answer  her  appeal! 

The  long  summer  had  burned  itself  away,  and 
the  winds  of  November  were  shrieking  about  the 
Pincian  hill,  when  Consul  General  Arthur  Mel- 
ville summoned  Edwin  Morgan  to  a  crucial  ex- 
amination of  Sidney  Landon's  affairs  in  the 
studio  of  the  Palazzo  Vecchio. 

Poor  Morgan  was  now  only  the  office  drudge 
of  the  supercilious  young  collegian  who  "ruled 
the  roost,"  and  threw  "my  uncle"  even  at  the  head 
of  the  Consul  General  upon  all  occasions. 

It  was  the  same  old  Rome,  with  a  new  budget 
of  social  scandals! 

But,  all  the  gilded  circle  "within  the  pale"  knew 
that  Mr.  Rawdon  Clark  was  lingering  at  Vienna, 
hovering  in  the  bewitching  presence  of  Miss 


254  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Agnes  Hawthorn,  who  was  soon  going  on  to 
Paris,  to  prepare  for  her  presentation  to  that  most 
august  of  majesties,  Queen  Victoria. 

The  brilliant  reign  of  Miss  Hawthorn  at  the 
Austrian  Court  had  led  the  ambitious  beauty  to 
spread  her  wings  for  further  flight. 

The  owner  of  the  Elkhorn  mine  had  left  hosts 
of  friends  behind  him  in  Rome,  for  his  genial 
way  had  been  paved  with  golden  hospitalities. 

Steady  old  Forrest  Grimes,  loyal  at  heart,  con- 
fided his  last  lingering  doubt  to  Frank  Hatton, 
now  an  avowed  protege  of  Clark,  who  lavished 
every  possible  consideration  upon  the  man  who 
was  a  cover  to  his  masked  guns! 

Unsuspicious  in  prosperity,  Frank  Hatton  was 
blinded  by  Clark's  officious  generosity.  He  was 
now  a  noted  knight  of  the  pen ! 
"II  avait  fait  son  chemin." 
"Frank,"  wrathfully  ejaculated  Grimes,  sud- 
denly, one  lonely  night,  "I  shall  always  believe 
that  Sidney  London  was  trapped  in  some  mean 
-way!  I  can  not  tell  you  all!  Clark  'had  it  in' 
for  him,  with  abundant  good  reason !  This  west- 
ern Crcesus  is  a  tireless  lover!  Such  a  man  is 
a  desperate  enemy!  I  believe  in  some  hidden 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  255 

way  Landon  fell  into  a  pit  dug  by  his  enemy." 

But  honest  Hatton  only  sighed : 

"He  nailed  down  his  own  coffin  by  clearing 
out!  Why  did  he  not  trust  to  us?" 

It  was  after  an  hour's  close  mental  scrutiny 
that  Consul  General  Arthur  Melville  gave  up  the 
task  of  entrapping  Consular  Clerk  Edwin  Mor- 
gan into  admissions  of  confidential  relations  with 
the  departed  Landon. 

"I  have  not  heard  from  Captain  Landon  since 
his  departure,  save  one  brief  note,  written  at 
Nice,  with  final  orders  to  send  all  mail  to  Consul 
Arnold  Swasey,"  said  Morgan. 

"And,  for  good  or  ill,  you  must  rest  content 
with  this!  It  is  the  whole  truth,  so  help  me 
God!" 

Morgan  dashed  away  and  returned  with  the 
letter ! 

"You  can  certify  a  copy  of  that  under  seal, 
arid  keep  it !"  said  the  now  defiant  young  man. 

"See  here,  Morgan,"  cried  the  mollified  official. 
"Look  at  this !  We  must  find  this  man !  We  are, 
in  honor,  bound  to  find  him!" 

He  handed  the  young  man  a  letter  and  narrow- 
ly watched  him  as  he  read: 


256  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"Urgent  and  Important. 

"Law  Offices  of.  Hayward,  Homans  and  Ross, 
"No.  58  La  Salle  Street, 

"St.  Louis,  Missouri, 
"November  loth,  18 — • — . 

"Consul  General  Arthur  Melville, 
"U.  S.  Consulate  General, 
"Rome,  Italy. 

"Dear  Sir : — We  appeal  to  you  to  officially  aid 
us  in  discovering  the  whereabouts  of  Captain 
Sidney  Landon  (late  U.  S.  Army),  and,  later, 
Vice  Consul  General,  accredited  to  your  office. 

"We  are  now  in  correspondence  with  all  the 
Legations  and  Consulates  of  Europe  upon  the 
same  subject,  as  well  as  those  in  the  Orient. 

"Messrs.  Freycinet  Freres,  of  Marseilles,  ab- 
solutely decline  to  give  his  whereabouts,  as  be- 
ing a  confidential  instruction  of  their  depositor 
and  client,  though  they  claim  to  have  forwarded 
a  letter  sent  to  them  by  us,  on  the  advice  of  Con- 
sul Arnold  Swasey,  of  Nice. 

"The  urgency  of  our  business  is  explained  by 
the  fact  that  our  esteemed  client, — the  late  Mr. 
John  Vaughan  Landon,  of  St.  Louis,  died  three 
months  ago,  leaving  an  estate,  consisting  of 
realty,  steamboat  property,  cash  in  bank,  and 
various  lead  manufactory  stocks,  amounting  to 
over  one  million  dollars. 

"This  vast  property  is  absolutely  and  uncon- 
ditionally left  to  Captain  Sidney  Landon. 

"Our  late  client  had  no  communication  for 
many  years  with  Captain  Landon's  father,  as  he 
was  an  unsuccessful  suitor  for  the  hand  of  the 
Captain's  mother. 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  257 

"The  young  gentleman  thus  suddenly  enriched 
may  be  even  ignorant  of  the  existence  of  this  past 
family  tie. 

"Both  the  dead  Landons  were  peculiar  men. 

"If  you  can  give  us  no  information,  cable  to 
us  at  once. 

"Any  expenses  that  you  may  incur  will  be  at 
once  remitted.  You  may  advertise  in  such  papers 
as  you  choose. 

"Failing  to  find  him,  we  shall  send  our  special 
agent  to  Europe  to  look  him  up,  directed  by  Frey- 
cinet  Freres.  We  refer  to  Messrs.  Drexel,  Mor- 
gan &  Co.,  London. 

"We  have  also  invoked  the  aid  of  the  Ameri- 
can Ambassador  at  Paris. 

"Cordially    yours, 
"Hayward,  Romans  and  Ross." 

The  young  official  laid  the  letter  down  with 
a  sigh. 

"If  it  were  Golconda's  mines,  I  can  tell  you 
no  more. 

"I  fancy,  in  time,  these  cautious  Frenchmen 
will  divulge  their  secret,  when  they  know  it  is  to 
his  advantage.  I  have  already  forwarded  a  half 
dozen  letters  from  these  lawyers  to  Nice. 

"I  keep  a  record  of  all  Captain  Landon's  mail 
with  the  ear  marks." 

When  the  clerk  was  dismissed,  Arthur  Mel- 

17 


258  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

ville  drove  to  the  Telegraph  Bureau  and  sent  a 
reply  to  the  St.  Louis  lawyers. 

Some  undefined  fear  of  thf  hostile  Minister 
Resident  tied  his  tongue,  and,  when  he  returned 
from  a  week's  visit  to  Nice,  he  had  still  concealed 
from  even  his  wife  all  reference  to  Landon's 
windfall.  He  brought  Morgan  into  the  studio 
to  give  him  a  confidential  disclosure. 

"Swasey  tells  me  that  Freycinet  Freres  have  tel- 
egraphed Captain  Landon's  address  to  the  law- 
yers in  America  upon  the  peremptory  demand  of 
an  Assistant  Secretary  of  Legation  sent  down 
from  Paris. 

"Also,  that  they  guarantee  Landon's  receiving 
the  entire  mail  forwarded !  He  is  now  somewhere 
in  the  Orient,  and, — all  this,  you  are  to  keep  as 
a  strict  secret!  No  one  but  Swasey,  you  and  I 
know  of  these  facts." 

While  the  fickle  goddess  of  Fortune  was  chas- 
ing the  mortal  whom  she  had  so  bitterly  chas- 
tened,— upon  the  deck  of  an  Italian  transport, — 
in  the  harbor  of  Massowah, — a  gaunt  and  wasted 
form  lay  stretched  out  in  a  hammock  under  the 
deck  awnings. 

No  one  who  had  ever  seen  Captain  Sidney 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  259 

Landon  lead  his  squadron  of  the  Grays  across 
the  cavalry  plain  at  Fort  Stanton,  would  have 
recognized  the  bearded  skeleton,  who  now 
watched,  with  hollow  eyes,  the  sand  dunes  of 
Massowah  fade  away,  as  the  steamer  "Colombo" 
swept  out  into  the  burning  waters  of  the  Red 
Sea! 

An  English  orderly,  an  adventurer, — a  hard- 
ened East  Indian  deserter, — watched  over  the  man 
who  had  brought  away  a  terrific  sword  slash  in 
the  left  shoulder,  as  a  memento  of  the  desperate 
fighting  on  the  fatal  plain  of  Gura. 

But,  when  the  Abyssinian  hordes  had  swarmed 
down  over  the  one  six-gun  battery  which  held 
them  back  for  an  hour, — Deserter  Jack  Haddon, 
a  game  Yorkshire  tyke,  shot  the  leading  Ras, — 
at  half  pistol  distance,  and  then — aided  by  the 
last  of  a  gun  crew,  dragged  Lieutenant  Colonel 
Sidney  Landon  into  a  place  of  safety,  where  a 
few  desperate  men,  at  bay,  working  the  deadly 
Remingtons,  turned  the  tide  of  assault  down  upon 
the  shrieking  mass  of  Egyptian  fugitives  in  the 
ravine  below.  They  were  richer  food  for  the 
thirsty  two-handed  swords  of  the  mountain 
devils. 


260  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

With  incredible  hardship,  Sidney  Landon  had 
been  gotten  down  to  Massowah,  and,  touched  by 
his  lion-like  daring,  the  recreant  Prince  Hassan 
pinned  a  grand  star  of  the  Medjidjie  on  the 
wounded  man's  breast,  and  then  ordered  him  to 
have  every  honor  shown  him  in  that  disgraceful 
home-coming  to  Cairo.  The  Giaour  had  been 
the  bravest  of  the  brave,  and  saved  the  right  wing 
of  the  army. 

Leaving  the  wreck  of  the  proud  army  of  Abys- 
sinia to  be  brought  home  later  from  Massowah, 
— Prince  Hassan  urged  on  the  "Colombo,"  so  as 
to  be  the  first  to  report  the  disaster  at  Court, — 
wrapped  in  euphemistic  lies. 

While  the  Abyssinian  lions  and  jackals  feasted 
upon  the  bodies  of  nine  thousand  slain, — while 
the  desert  vultures  followed  the  train  of  captives 
and  gorged  themselves  in  feasting  upon  the  de- 
capitated bodies  of  those  who  fell  by  the  way,  the 
harem-bred  Egyptian  prince  hastened  back  to  the 
delights  of  the  Shoubrah, — to  the  mystic  pleas- 
ures of  the  lordly  seraglio. 

Deserter  Haddon,  loyal  when  others  fell  off, 
brought  his  man  into  Suez  in  good  shape. 

Colonel  Landon's  staring  eyes  had  regained 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  261 

their  brightness, — his  wound  was  healing,  fairly 
well,  for  the  sweep  of  the  two-edged  sword  had 
been  stayed  by  his  thick  shoulder  knots  and  tough 
canteen  strap. 

"We'll  have  you  on  your  feet  in  a  jiffy, 
Colonel,"  cheerily  cried  the  Yorkshireman,  as  he 
skirmished  for  the  best  place  in  the  special  train 
waiting  them  at  Suez! 

Two  days  later,  Doctor  Warren  Bey  took 
charge  of  the  hero  of  Gura,  and  installed  him  in 
a  fair  upper  chamber  at  Shepheards'. 

It  was  only  after  General  Stone  had  heard  the 
story  of  the  disgraceful  rout  at  Gura  from  Colonel 
Landon's  own  lips  that  he  handed  over  the  sol- 
dier's accumulated  mail! 

"You  are  to  have  a  year's  leave  of  absence,  with 
the  rank  of  Pasha, — upon  full  pay! 

"I  do  this  by  Prince  Hassan's  direct  order.  He 
informed  His  Higness  the  Khedive  that  you  were 
the  man  who  saved  the  wreck  of  the  army  by  the 
magnificent  fighting  of  the  steel  battery  upon  the 
hill!" 

The  silver-haired  old  veteran  whispered,  "Get 
out  of  Egypt!  Leave  as  soon  as  you  can!  I'll 
send  your  orders  and  your  advance  pay  down ! 


262  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"Be  sure  to  give  the  paymaster  twenty-five 
guineas  backsheesh!  They  are  uneasy  till  you 
leave!  The  palace  circle  do  not  want  you  to 
talk!" 

Colonel  Landon  silently  bowed  his  promise  to 
get  out!  He  well  knew  now  where  poison  and 
assassination  lurked. 

'Where  to?"  he  murmured.  "Greece,  or 
Sicily,  or  the  south  of  Italy, — there  is  the  place 
to  recover!  Make  it  Sicily!  It  is  the  garden  of 
the  Mediterranean." 

So  said  the  anxious  Lieutenant  General,  as  he 
took  his  hasty  leave. 

Handy  man  Jack  Haddon  ran  into  the  Colonel's 
room,  when  he  heard  the  wounded  soldier's  shout 
of  surprise. 

A  couple  of  hastily  opened  letters  lay  upon  the 
floor. 

"Jack,"  laughingly  said  the  new-made  Pasha. 
"It  rains  good  luck!  I've  just  been  promoted 
to  the  rank  of  Pasha, — I  have  a  year's  leave  of 
absence,  and,  /  have  had  a  fortune  left  to  me  in 
America! 

"Now,  let  us  get  out  of  here,  as  soon  as  possible! 
General  Stone  wants  me  to  take  the  next  steamer 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  263 

to  Brindisi.  He  will  send  me  down  to  Alexan- 
dria on  a  special  train." 

"Do  I  go,  sir,"  hastily  cried  the  excited  En- 
glishman. "You  shot  the  fellow  who  made  that 
unfair  left-handed  slash  at  me,"  good  humoredly 
said  the  soldier. 

"You  have  a  soft  billet  for  life!  I'll  never  for- 
get you  lugging  me  up  into  that  little  dead  angle 
on  your  back!  If  you  can  stand  being  a  valet, 
consider  yourself  enlisted,  for  life!" 

"I  waited  on  Captain  Maitland,  of  the  Eighth 
Hussars,  two  years  in  India,"  joyously  exclaimed 
the  deserter. 

"Remember"  sternly  said  Landon.  "Not  a 
word  of  my  private  affairs!  I  wish  no  one  to 
know  of  my  American  windfall !  The  paymaster 
comes  down  to-night !  I  want  you  to  get  me  up 
a  complete  traveling  outfit!" 

"Right  you  are,  sir"  laughed  Haddon;  "the 
blackeys  got  all  our  luggage!  God!  How  the 
beggars  came  boundin'  on  with  them  'ere  long 
cross-handled  swords!  and  that  there  bloomin' 
Ras  I  shot ! 

"He  loomed  up  through  the  smoke  like  a  giant, 
and  then,  when  I  potted  him, — his  blasted  horse 


264  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

came  rockin'  down  almost  on  my  head  with  the 
dead  man! 

"An'  they're  a  decoratin'  themselves  now  with 
our  belongin's, — the  boundin'  big  black  beg- 
gars! 

"We  are  left  almost  naked." 

"Be  sure  to  get  your  own  outfit,  a  regular  swell 
gentleman's  gentleman,"  laughed  Landon. 

"Is  it  safe  where  we  be  a  goin',  Sir?"  hazarded 
the  deserter. 

"Oh !  We  are  off  for  Palermo  la  felice,"  gaily 
cried  Landon. 

"I  shall  winter  in  Sicily.  I  want  to  run  over 
and  see  Naples  and  the  south  of  Italy !  Don't  be 
afraid!  A  pair  of  mutton  chop  whiskers  and 
dark  clothes  will  take  all  the  soldier  out  of 
your  appearance!  Besides,  I  can  get  any  Amer- 
ican consul  to  give  you  a  provisional  'laissez 
passer'  passport !  When  we  go  over  next  year  to 
shoot  some  big  game  in  the  Rockies,  you  shall  be- 
come an  American  citizen. 

"I  will  go  over  in  the  early  spring  to  settle  my 
affairs!  I  would  not  dare  to  cross  the  Atlantic 
just  yet !" 

The  newly  made  Pasha  fell  into  a  dreamy  ret- 


ONE  WEARY  YEAR.  265 

rospect  as  the  soft  night  fell  and  the  great  white 
stars  glittered  on  the  blue  flowing  Nile. 

One  mad,  wild  thought  came  to  his  awakened 
heart!  "We  are  equals  now!  I  am  within  the 
golden  pale!  Shall  I  seek  Agnes  out?" 

The  stinging  remembrance  of  her  cold  ignoring 
of  his  last  heart-wrung  appeal  to  her  mercy 
chilled  him!  "Never!"  he  cried.  "She  would 
not  even  notice  my  cry  in  a  last  agony  of  soul! 
And, — my  fortune  comes  to  me  too  late!  I  will 
see  the  south  of  Italy,  but  never  return  to  Rome, 
my  via  dolorosa!" 

And  then  some  strange  spell  fell  upon  him! 
"We  drank  together  of  the  waters  of  Trevi!  I 
saw  her  throw  her  own  silver  offerings  into  the 
water.  'Date  obolus  Neptune!'  Ah!  No,"  he 
sighed,  waking. 

"Ah!    No!    Ah!    No!    The  waves  may  fling  their  white- 
ness o'er  the  sea, 

But   Time  nor  Tide  will  never  bring  my  false  love  back 
to  me!" 

While  Landon  mourned  his  vanished  hopes, 
Agnes  Hawthorn  at  Vienna  was  startled  at  an 
appealing  letter  from  Gertrude  Melville  begging 
her  to  visit  her  at  Rome,  while  en  route  to  Paris. 


266  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"You  know  you  asked  me  to  watch  over  your 
name, — to  be  your  defender  here !  There  is  dan- 
ger of  a  complete  disclosure  of  the  adventure  out- 
side the  gates  of  San  Sebastiani.  I  dare  not  write 
all — I  can  not  come  to  you,  I  am  tied  down  here ! 

"I  can  not  confide  even  in  my  husband,  and  the 
Fountain  of  Trevi  calls  you  back  to  me!  I  can 
arrange  all!  Telegraph  at  once!" 

That  evening  Gertrude  Melville  cried,  "Thank 
God !" — as  she  opened  a  telegram  saying,  "I  will 
come  and — we  will  go  down  to  Naples  together, 
as  we  planned  so  long  ago." 


BOOK  III 

THE    FAITHFUL    FOUNTAIN 
DEAR  TO  LOVERS 


BOOK  III. 

THE  FAITHFUL  FOUNTAIN   DEAR  TO 
LOVERS 


CHAPTER  XL 

IN   THE  BLUE  GROTTO. 

It  was  two  months  after  the  quiet  flitting  of  the 
newly  made  Pasha  from  Cairo  when  Sidney  Lan- 
don,  now  rejuvenated  by  the  soft  Sicilian  air,  be- 
took himself  to  a  pretty  little  villa  at  Sorrento. 

In  vain  he  tried  to  face  the  idea  of  a  visit  to 
Rome!  There  was  a  pang  in  every  memory 
which  called  up  that  fair  imperial  face,  golden 
wreathed,  which  had  first  met  his  ardent  gaze 
upon  the  Pincian. 

"I  should  not  care  to  meet  her,"  he  mused.  "She 
has  answered  the  eternal  No !  by  her  cold  silence. 
Not  even  a  single  word  did  she  waste  on  the  man 
who  at  least  saved  her  from  the  brutal  pillage  of 
the  robbers  of  the  Campagna." 

269 


270  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

His  face  hardened  when  he  thought  of  the  un- 
revenged  insult  of  the  pompous  Minister  Resi- 
dent, and  the  frightened  subserviency  of  Arthur 
Melville ! 

"No!  I  will  not  go  to  Rome!  I  will  never 
drink  of  the  waters  of  Trevi  again,"  he  indig- 
nantly vowed.  "I  can  easily  get  Grimes  and  Hat- 
ton  out  of  Italy  for  a  tramp  in  Switzerland,  or  a 
month  in  the  Scottish  hills  by  and  by !" 

The  pseudo  Pasha  was  as  yet  ignorant  of  all 
the  clouds  resting  upon  his  name,  the  simple  fall- 
ing off  of  Agues  Hawthorn's  social  friendship 
being  enough  to  banish  him  from  Rome ! 

"I  suppose  that  she  belongs  to  Clark  noiv"  he 
sighed. 

With  a  careful  agnosticism  as  to  the  St.  Louis 
fortune,  he  wrote  to  Messrs.  Freycinet  Freres  to 
have  their  American  correspondents  investigate, 
and  to  report  back  by  cable  the  results  at  once. 

With  a  sudden  freak  of  Timon-like  misan- 
thropy, he  carefully  concealed  his  identity  at  Sor- 
rento. It  was  an  easy  matter. 

His  Marseilles  mail  was  all  sent  under  cover  to 
Mr.  John  Haddon  at  Naples. 

And  a  confidential  letter  to  Consul  Arnold 


IN  THE  BLUE  GROTTO.  271 

Swasey  gave  that  same  lively  English  person's 
name  as  a  forwarding  mail  agent.  Locally,  dis- 
guise was  easy. 

Landon  now  sported  a  red  fez  and  a  flowing 
beard,  his  face  was  burned  almost  black  by  the 
Abyssinian  sun  and  the  glare  of  the  Red  sea. 

Haddon,  the  newly  fledged  soldier  valet,  had 
picked  up  a  very  fair  French  knocking  around  the 
Mediterranean  after  that  desertion  which  forced 
him  to  avoid  even  the  shadow  of  the  British  flag. 

For  the  "Widow's"  arms  are  long,  her  "steel 
bracelets"  have  an  enduring  grip,  and  Jack  Had- 
don was  not  desirous  to  become  an  expert  in 
"oakum  picking." 

There  seemed  to  be  little  doubt  of  the  solidity 
of  the  strangely  devised  fortune.  For  Consul 
Arnold  Swasey  wrote  under  cover  to  "Mr.  John 
Haddon"  that  he  was  authorized  to  advance 
through  Drexel,  Morgan  &  Co.  any  sum  of  ready 
money  to  the  beneficiary  up  to  the  sum  of  fifty 
thousand  dollars,  upon  the  heir's  draft  on  Hay- 
ward,  Homans  &  Ross,  accompanied  by  a  legal 
certificate  of  Sidney  Landon's  identity  under  the 
Consular  seal. 

"It  seems  that  it  is  not  fairy  gold— after  all!" 


273  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

mused  Landon.  The  one  bitter  drop  in  his  cup  of 
joy  was  Swasey's  careful  statement  that  neither 
letter,  telegram  nor  message  had  reached  the 
Consulate  at  Nice — coming  from  Rome. 

And,  Edwin  Morgan,  secretly  notified  by  Con- 
sul Swasey,  had  duly  sent  on  a  list  of  all  Landon's 
outgoing  mail.  There  was  the  tell-tale  date,  with 
the  note  of  the  delivery  of  two  sealed  letters  to 
Mrs.  Gertrude  Melville.  "There  could  have  been 
no  miscarriage  of  my  letters,"  sighed  the  newly 
made  Pasha,  whose  brow  darkened  as  he  learned 
that  Miss  Agnes  Hawthorn  was  once  more  back 
in  Rome,  the  guest  of  the  Melvilles,  on  her  way  to 
Paris  and  London. 

The  fact  of  Rawdon  Clark  being  her  principal 
escort  and  magnificent  entertainer  told  an  omin- 
ous story. 

Beyond  the  fact  of  Vice  Consul  General  Stil- 
well  Meacham's  alliance  with  Maspero,  and  Mor- 
gan's renewed  official  slavery,  there  was  no  news, 
save  that  Forrest  Grimes  had  been  made  Chief  of 
a  great  Literary  Syndicate  in  London, — and  that 
honest  Frank  Hatton  was  now  given  carte 
blanche  and  a  roving  commission  to  cover  all  the 
Continent  and  the  Orient  for  the  Philadelphia 


IN  THE  BLUE  GROTTO.  273 

Mail,  now  rapidly  becoming  an  aggressive  sensa- 
tional journal  under  the  hard  pressure  of  Rawdon 
Clark's  unflagging  ambition. 

"Poor  Morgan!"  sighed  Landon.  "If  this 
estate  turns  out  what  it  might  be  I  will  make  him 
my  personal  representative  and  business  mana- 
ger, for  I'll  settle  things  up, — take  Jack  Haddon 
as  'man  Friday'  and, — then — do  the  world  in 
good  shape." 

His  youth  stood  him  in  good  stead,  and  the 
beauty  of  the  witching  coast  led  him  far  seaward 
in  his  splendid  lateen  sailed  cutter,  "Santa  Lucia." 

Jack  Haddon  proved  to  be  a  human  treasure 
and  on  his  excursions  to  Naples  transacted  all  his 
master's  business,  while  Landon,  in  mufti, 
dreamed  around  Herculaneum  and  Pompeii,  only 
visiting  Naples  at  night  to  escape  American 
tourists. 

To  the  villa  dwellers,  the  young  Pasha  was  only 
known  as  a  Turk  of  vast  wealth,  and  so,  many 
bright-eyed  women  vainly  peeped  over  the  garden 
walls  to  see  Fatima  with  the  Silver  Veil  hovering 
in  the  gardens  of  "El  Turco." 

These  pretty  tourists  and  local  visitors  were, 
however,  all  doomed  to  disappointment,  even  that 

18 


274  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

audacious  Russian  Princess  with  the  dancing 
black  eyes,  who  so  frankly  invited  herself  to 
breakfast  with  the  recluse. 

Over  the  cigarettes  and  cognac,  with  a  plead- 
ing glance, — she  cried  seductively :  "Mon  Pasha ! 
Montrez  moi  votre  harem !  Ca  ne  vous  fera  pas 
mal!  Je  vous  assure  que  je  suis  bon  garcon!" 

The  mutine  Princess  sighed  in  a  pretty  distress 
at  the  embarrassed  denials  of  the  mysterious 
Pasha,  but  the  little  dejeuner  was  really  charming 
— and,  she  gaily  bore  away  a  bracelet  of  priceless 
scarabei  as  a  trophy,  leaving  only  a  rose  from  her 
passionate  bosom  to  remind  Landon  that  he  could 
not  escape  "1'eternal  feminine." 

Judicious  letters  from  Ferik  Pasha  Stone  soon 
convinced  Landon  of  the  unanimity  of  the 
Cairene  princes  in  their  desire  that  Lieutenant 
Colonel  Landon  should  continue  to  amuse  himself 
abroad  and  never  return  to  tell  the  story  of  Prince 
Hassan's  cowardice  and  the  incapacity  of  the 
Egyptian  generals  who  allowed  their  men  to  be 
butchered  like  sheep. 

"You  must  not  come  back  to  Egypt,"  wrote 
the  courtly  old  West  Pointer.  "There  have  been 
some  brutal  courts  martial, — a  number  of  officers 


IN  THE  BLUE  GROTTO.  275 

summarily  shot, — and  murderous  duels  arranged 
to  put  men  out  of  the  way,  in  which  paid  Italian 
renegades  have  butchered  honest  officers  who 
knew  too  much !  Consider  that  your  leave  with 
pay  is  extended  a  discretion.  A  word  to  the  wise 
is  sufficient!" 

It  was  only  when  the  young  Pasha  had  re- 
ceived the  final  cabled  confirmation  of  his  good 
fortune  from  Freycinet  Freres  that  he  felt  free 
to  answer  General  Stone.  "I  guess  that  it's  all 
right,"  he  laughingly  said,  when  he  read  their 
telegram : 

"Lawyers  and  executors  perfectly  reliable. 
Estate  has  no  involvements.  No  contests  or  ad- 
verse claimants.  The  property  is  solid  and  most 
advantageously  invested.  Draw  on  us  up  to  a 
hundred  thousand  francs  a  votre  Volonte." 

"That  settles  it!"  mused  Landon.  "When 
these  sly  Frenchmen  will  offer  a  stranger  a  hun- 
dred thousand  francs  of  their  own  money, — this 
fortune  is  not  a  ghost  story." 

He  wrote  at  once  to  the  loyal  old  General  Stone 
that  he  would  use  his  full  leave  and  keep  his 
Pasha's  rank  merely  as  an  incognito. 

Briefly  telling  of  his  good  fortune, — he  said: 


276  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"I  shall  buy  a  stiff  big  schooner  yacht,  a  sailing 
vessel  of  five  hundred  tons,  and  run  around  the 
world,  for  my  knowledge  has  been  too  much  con- 
fined to  the  waving  grassy  sea  of  our  boundless 
prairies. 

"You  can  drop  me  off  the  Egyptian  Army  List, 
but  not  out  of  your  heart,  at  the  expiration  of  the 
year — for,  when  I  next  see  the  royal  advance  of 
the  wild  Abyssinian  horse, — or  meet  the  rush  of 
their  leaping  two-handed  swordsmen, — their 
frantic  spearmen, — I  want  something  stiffer  than 
Egyptian  fellahs  behind  me! 

"But  one  thing  would  ever  call  me  back  to 
Gura's  bloody  plain.  It  would  be  to  put  up  a 
monument  to  my  dead  friend,  the  plucky  little 
Captain  Mohammed  Ali,  who  died  fighting  that 
steel  battery  as  bravely  as  Pickett's  men  struggled 
up  to  Hancock's  bloody  Gettysburg  lines,  where 
Lee  found  the  Yankees,  at  last,  a  living  'Stone- 
wall!' Poor  Mohammed!  He  stood  the  pyra- 
midal rush  off  for  an  hour  and  a  half!  I  saw 
him  carrying  shell  in  his  own  hands,  and  the  very 
last  time  he  passed  me,  the  gallant  Arab  cried,  in 
his  broken  English,  'Battery  good; — you  see!' 

"To  which   I   replied  with  my  only   Arabic 


IN  THE  BLUE  GROTTO.  277 

words,  'Taib  Ketir!' — in  other  words, — 'way  up, 
— you  bet!' 

"A  single  brave  man,  in  a  clan  of  cowardly 
officers!  As  Sergeant  Jack  Haddon  lugged  me 
away,  I  saw  Mohammed's  white,  ghastly  face 
lying  under  his  favorite  gun! 

"When  he  crossed  Al  Sirat,  let  us  hope  that 
hordes  of  the  beauties  of  that  Mussulman  Para- 
dise escorted  him  to  cooling  bowers  by  the  heav- 
enly Bendemeer!" 

Perfectly  secure  now  in  his  incognito, — safe  in 
the  loyalty  of  Swasey, — Morgan  and  Freycinet 
Freres, — Sidney  Landon  soon  became  the  boldest 
yachtsman  of  the  Tyrrhene  sea. 

The  wild  sweep  of  the  winds  from  old  Car- 
thage curling  the  white-crested  billows  delighted 
his  troubled  soul !  The  stars  mirrored  in  the  blue 
deep  soothed  him,  and  he  felt  a  fierce  delight  as 
his  craft  bounded  along  as  "shrill  sang  the  tackle, 
sang  the  sail." 

Drifting  under  Sorrento's  storied  steeps,  glid- 
ing out  from  under  the  purple  shadows  of  Monte 
Tiberio,  into  the  sapphire  bosom  of  Amalfi's  bay, 
or, — floating  off  Castellmare, — his  winged  boat 
hanging  between  heaven  and  earth, — he  listened 


278  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

to  the  laughter  of  the  Italian  women,  borne  by  the 
willing  winds  out  across  the  soft  foam  of  the  sil- 
ver breakers ! 

Ischia,  sculptured  and  stately, — blue  Capri 
haunted  by  the  memories  of  the  voluptuous  Ti- 
berius,— Tarentum,  Gaeta  and  Isola, — he 
watched  them  all  glide  by,  in  an  unrivaled  pano- 
rama, while  his  wild  boatmen  sang  "Santa  Lucia," 
and  eyed  their  strange  master  in  a  stupid  wonder ! 
These  were  days  in  which  the  beauty  of  sea  and 
shore  stole  over  his  darkened  soul,  and  he  put  off 
from  day  to  day,  in  this  enchanting  dolce  far 
niente,  the  answer  to  the  lawyers'  appeals  to  set- 
tle a  time  for  his  home  coming. 

He  had  put  all  the  sorrows  of  his  past  life  be- 
hind him,  even  the  malignity  of  the  envious 
woman  far  away  whose  anonymous  letters  had 
darkened  the  last  year  of  his  army  life! 

He  would  have  swept  on  to  Rome  as  an  aven- 
ger of  his  honor — had  he  known  of  the  web  of  in- 
famy woven  around  his  dishonored  name! 

But  the  half  confidences  of  his  friends  had  left 
him  unarmed  against  the  poisoned  breath  of 
secret  slander. 

It  was  with  a  delicious  sense  of  indecision  that 


IN  THE  BLUE  GROTTO.  279 

Landon  bade  the  sailing  master  run  out  to  sea, 
when  he  left  his  anchorage  under  the  walls  of 
Paradise,  on  an  entrancing  morning,  and  vaguely 
pointed  toward  Capri  and  Ischia. 

He  had  made  the  ocean  his  friend,  and,  blown 
far  off  to  sea,  he  felt  the  truth  of  Buchanan 
Read's  exquisite  lines: 

"No  more,  no  more  the  worldly  shore 
Upbraids  me  with  its  lewd  uproar." 

Five  hours  later  the  falcon  fleet  boat  skimmed 
into  La  Marina,  where  the  Pasha  gave  his  crew  a 
run  among  the  laughing-eyed  women  of  that 
merry  shore  where  care  never  abides. 

A  fancy  to  visit  the  Blue  Grotto  once  more  was 
upon  him,  and  as  the  "Santa  Lucia"  swept  on 
toward  the  Grotto  Azzura,  Landon  merrily 
cracked  on  all  sail  and  chased  a  pretty  little  yacht 
flying  the  American  colors. 

He  lay  at  ease  as  the  swift  lateen  boat  skimmed 
by  its  overtaken  adversary,  and  idly  watched 
that  silken  fluttering  ensign ! 

He  noted  not  the  graceful  forms  of  the  two 
ladies,  nor  the  face  of  the  one  cavalier !  His  mind 
was  far  away  in  the  past ! 


280  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

He  dreamed  over  again  the  wild  days  of  his 
life  in  the  Sioux  country !  He  felt  again  the  thrill 
with  which  bearing  down  upon  the  yelling  Indian 
foe  he  had  raced  with  his  guidon  bearer  in  the 
maddening  charge. 

But  he  suddenly  sheered  off  his  yacht  as  he  saw 
field  glasses  brought  into  requisition, — the 
"Santa  Lucia"  was  well  to  the  front,  he  was  in 
no  mood  for  a  rencontre,  and  so  he  bore  away 
with  the  rippling  laughter  of  the  two  women 
still  ringing  in  his  ears. 

It  was  for  mere  social  self  protection  that  his 
dainty  cutter  bore  the  white  flag  with  the  blood- 
red  crescent  and  star  of  Egypt. 

"They  are  probably  guying  me  for  a  'terrible 
Turk,'  "  he  murmured  to  Haddon,  who  was  act- 
ing "Boatswain"  and  contemptuously  bossed  the 
swarthy  Italian  crew,  whose  red  knitted  night 
caps  and  golden  ear  rings  were  the  secret  scorn  of 
the  sturdy  Englishman. 

"Looks  like  a  lot  of  bloomin'  old  women, — 
they  does,"  sneered  Haddon,  '"an'  yet  spry 
enough,  for  beggars  as  lives  on  yard  long  bread, 
drinks  green  sweet  oil  and  has  a  pocket  of  dried 
olives  in  them  frenchified  trousers. 


IN  THE  BLUE  GROTTO.  281 

"Say,  now, — a  steamin'  joint  or  a  rattlin'  beef- 
steak would  drive  'em  all  mad.  An'  them  yaller 
crawlin'  snails — Damme!" 

Pasha  Landon  curiously  watched  the  strange 
yacht  brail  up  her  sail  and  come  up  in  the  wind 
before  the  low  entrance  of  the  world-renowned 
Bower  of  Undine,  the  fairy  Grotto  Azzura. 

'They've  a  lubberly  way  of  handlin'  that  there 
pinnace,"  growled  Haddon,  as  the  two  ladies  and 
their  escort  were  got  over  the  side,  in  the  lee  of 
the  little  pleasure  craft,  into  its  small  boat  towed 
astern. 

"Better  a'  trusted  to  these  skiff  fellers  what 
haunts  these  holes  in  the  rocks  here  like  the 
comes !  This  'ere  grotto  is  their  only  livin' ! 

"Aye !  There,  you  lubbers !"  he  cried  as  one  of 
the  ladies  half  rose  in  fright,  and  was  restrained 
by  the  man  who  sat  in  the  stern. 

Sidney  Landon  kept  his  boat  on  under  way  and 
feasted  his  eyes  upon  the  incomparable  panorama 
of  Monte  Solaro  dreaming  there  above  them,  the 
white-walled  Hermitage,  and  the  shattered  walls 
of  the  Castello  di  Barbarossa. 

"A  fairy  island,  floating  on  an  enchanted  sea," 
he  murmured.  "No  wonder  the  world-sated  Ti- 


282  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

berius  dreamed  away  ten  years  in  this  delightful 
maze. 

"With  his  twelve  villas  dedicated  to  the  Gods 
— his  great  palace  'Villa  Jovis,' — the  proud 
Roman  thought  little  as  he  governed  the  world 
from  this  island  speck,  that  the  pale  face  of  the 
martyr  of  Calvary  would  drive  his  gods  away 
into  an  eternal  oblivion. 

"But  Rome's  eagles  have  perished, — the  cross 
of  the  Nazarene  still  glitters  over  the  .Capitoline 
hill,  and,  Pan  murmurs  no  longer  in  the  reeds  by 
the  river!" 

At  an  inquiring  sign  from  Haddon,  Landon 
briefly  cried,  "Go  about,  we'll  go  back  to  the 
Grotto!" 

"Will  you  go  in,  sir?"  asked  Haddon.  "Them 
there  Americans  is  gone,  their  yacht  is  out  of 
sight!" 

Sidney  Landon  nodded  an  assent,  and  the 
"Santa  Lucia"  swooped  down  to  the  shoals  west 
of  the  grotto's  half-hidden  entrance. 

In  a  few  moments,  the  anchor  was  dropped,  and 
Landon,  with  Haddon,  stepped  into  the  skiff  of 
the  eagle-eyed  islander  who  well  knew  how  lib- 
eral El  Turco  was. 


IN  THE  BLUE  GROTTO.  283 

"The  light  will  be  superb  to-day,"  carelessly 
said  Landon  as  he  lay  down  in  the  skiff,  while 
Haddon  lay  down  on  the  other  side.  Only  in  this 
way  could  they  glide  under  the  low  wall  of  the 
opening. 

They  darted  in  under  the  low  three-foot  arch 
of  the  huge  overhanging  rocks,  and  the  boatman, 
with  one  last  vigorous  stroke  of  his  oars,  laid 
himself  flat  down — as  the  light  skiff  dashed  in, 
swept  on  by  the  gleaming  blue  and  silver  flood ! 

There  was  a  sudden  crash, — then  a  woman's 
voice  rang  out  in  a  shrill  wail  of  agony,  and,  in  a 
moment,  Sidney  Landon  was  swimming  for  his 
life  in  the  phosphorescent  gleaming  flood. 

As  he  rose  to  the  surface,  the  soldier  saw  a 
woman's  form  swept  by  him,  gleaming  strangely 
in  the  lambent  blue  light. 

"All  right,,  sir,  I've  got  this  'ere  one,"  puffed 
Haddon,  as  he  vigorously  swam  toward  the  little 
landing  place  at  the  right  of  the  grotto  where  the 
broken  steps  still  marked  the  old  land  entrance 
used  by  Tiberius. 

Landon  never  glanced  at  the  three  boatmen 
now  clinging  to  their  overturned  skiffs,  but  he 


284  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

firmly  caught  the  drapery  of  the  woman  near  him 
as  the  undertow  was  drawing  her  out  to  sea. 

With  a  dozen  vigorous  strokes,  the  Pasha 
gained  the  rocky  landing,  where,  in  the  blue 
radiance,  the  hardy  Englishman  was  now  leaning 
down  to  aid  him  with  his  helpless  burden. 

There  was  puffing  and  sputtered  prayers  as  the 
boatmen,  swimming  alongside  their  skiffs,  piloted 
toward  the  safe  landing  place  a  man  who  was 
frantically  clinging  to  the  gunwales  of  the  water- 
logged craft. 

Landon  paid  no  attention  to  the  cowardly  man 
as  he  scrambled  out,  but  was  leaning  over  the 
young  woman  whose  face  rested  upon  his  knees. 

Scream  after  scream  rang  through  the  cavern 
while  Landon  labored  to  revive  the  half-suffo- 
cated woman. 

The  three  boatmen  had  skillfully  righted  the 
Capri  built  skiff  and  were  now  quickly  bailing  it 
out  with  the  scoops  lashed  to  the  gunwales. 

"Get  out  to  my  boat  and  bring  some  matches 
and  candles,  and  a  bottle  of  brandy,"  cried  Lan- 
don, while  Haddon  grumbled,  "  }0w  the  devil 
did  this  'ere  thing  'appen?  The  blasted  fools  had 
a  right  to  sing  out !  Who  knew  you  were  in  here 


IN  THE  BLUE  GROTTO.  285 

anyway  ?"  he  wrathfully  cried  to  the  rescued  man 
who  was  shaking  himself  like  a  water  dog ! 

But  Sidney  Landon  paid  no  heed  to  all  their 
clamor !  He  cried  in  his  anguish,  "Dead,  my  God, 
dead.  Agnes,  speak  to  me,  speak  but  once." 

For  it  was  the  lovely  face  of  the  woman  who 
had  scorned  him, — the  face  of  the  beauty  of  the 
Pincian,  the  fair  American,  heiress,  which  lay 
there,  gleaming  pale  and  cold  in  the  exquisite 
blue  light! 

It  seemed  an  age  till  the  skiff  returned,  and 

• 

then,  Paolo,  Landon's  man,  lit  a  port  fire  and 
handed  a  lighted  candle  to  each  of  the  little  party 
clinging  to  the  narrow  rocky  ledge. 

Landon  was  on  his  knees  forcing  a  draught  of 
cognac  into  the  mouth  of  the  woman  whose  faint 
moans  now  told  of  returning  consciousness. 

"Who  are  you?"  blubbered  Robert  Brandon, 
as  he  gazed  at  Landon's  flowing  beard  and  the 
Turkish  fez  still  clinging  to  his  sunburned  tem- 
ples. 

"Norie  of  your  business,  you  fool!"  shouted 
Landon.  "Keep  off, — or  I'll  throw  you  into  the 
water!  Paolo!"  he  cried.  "Get  out  around  the 


286  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

point  and  have  these  people's  boat  come  up  to  the 
cave !" 

The  quick-witted  Italian  tossed  a  dry  boat 
cloak  up  to  the  narrow  ledge. 

"Now,  madame,"  decisively  said  Landon.  "I 
will  get  you  and  this  young  lady  out  to  my  yacht, 
here  at  anchor,  and  send  the  pinnace  back  for  the 
others.  Let  me  direct  the  boatmen!" 

"Great  God!  It  is  Sidney  Landon!"  almost 
shrieked  Gertrude  Melville,  but  the  soldier  an- 
swered nothing,  as  he  directed  Haddon  and  one 
boatman  to  steady  the  now  bailed-out  pinnace  of 
the  Naples  yacht,  while  he  wrapped  Agnes  Haw- 
thorn in  the  boat  cloak  and  lowered  her  into  the 
shallop. 

"Step  in  now,  Gertrude,"  cried  Landon.  "Drink 
a  draught  of  this  brandy !  It  may  save  your  life!" 

Handing  the  bottle  to  the  frightened  artist, 
Brandon, — the  soldier,  with  cool,  sharp  com- 
mands, guided  the  pinnace  out  under  the  danger- 
ous arch. 

"How  did  it  happen?"  faintly  asked  Gertrude 
Melville,  still  half  dazed  as  she  gazed  in  wonder 
at  Landon's  altered  appearance. 

"Your  people  should  have  kept  the  boat  lying 


IN  THE  BLUE  GROTTO.  287 

off  the  cave,  or  had  your  men  shout  a  warning  in 
coming  out !  But  I  see  that  they  are  only  Nea- 
politan boatmen  and  know  nothing  of  the  rules  of 
safety  of  this  dangerous  entrance !" 

By  this  time  the  pinnace  had  glided  alongside 
the  Santa  Lucia, — and  a  dozen  brawny  arms 
lifted  the  helpless  Agnes  Hawthorn  out  of  the 
boat. 

"Go  back  and  get  that  man!"  sharply  ordered 
Landon,  as  he  said,  "Mrs.  Melville,  you  shall 
have  the  cabin.  The  little  Italian  boy  will  give 
you  anything  you  wish.  I  recommend  you  to  get 
back  to  La  Marina  as  soon  as  your  boat  comes !" 

"Promise  me  that  you  will  come  to  us  at 
Naples,  Hotel  Bristol !  We  will  be  there  a  week," 
— cried  Gertrude  Melville  shaking  herself  like  a 
water  rat. 

"Where  have  you  been?"  she  eagerly  de- 
manded. 

" In  Abyssinia"  Landon  gravely  said.  "I  am 
now  a  Pasha  in  the  Egyptian  Army,  serving  with 
Lieutenant  General  Stone.  I  was  wounded  at  the 
Battle  of  Gura,  and  I  have  been  given  a  year's 
leave  of  absence  to  go  around  the  world ! 

"Go  to  her, — Gertrude,"  he  cried,  as  the  hulk- 


288  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

ing  form  of  Robert  Brandon  came  over  the  side. 

The  artist's  face  blackened  in  a  scowl  as  he,  at 
last,  recognized  his  maritime  host.  "Don't  go 
down  in  that  cabin,"  sharply  said  Landon.  "Here, 
Tito,  wait  upon  this  man !" 

They  could  see  the  Naples  boat  now  being 
warped  along  with  sweeps  a  half  a  mile  away. 
"Whose  boat  is  this?"  gruffly  demanded  Bran- 
don. 

"Mine!"  emphatically  said  the  soldier.  "Hark 
ye! — Mr.  Robert  Brandon,  if  it  were  not  for 
these  two  half-drowned  women, — I  would  pitch 
you  overboard,  and  let  you  swim  ashore !  I  know 
you  for  a  dirty  lickspittle  and  a  coward  tale- 
bearer,— an  eater  of  crumbs  from  other  men's 
tables!" 

And  then — Landon,  turning  his  back,  philo- 
sophically cast  off  his  drenched  sea  jacket,  and  al- 
lowed the  alert  Italians  to  unloose  his  shoes, 
wring  out  his  garments,  and,  quickly  wrapping 
himself  in  a  long  boat  cloak,  he  took  a  generous 
draught  of  cognac  and  lit  a  Trabuco!  "See  that 
the  Signior  wants  for  nothing,"  the  Pasha  or- 
dered to  his  over-anxious  cabin  boy. 

A  grim  silence  reigned  until  the  hired  Naples 


'MR.  BRANDON,  MY   MEN  WILL  PUT  YOU  ON   YOUR  OWN 
BOAT!    I   WILL   BRING  THE  LADIES  OFF  !  "-Page aSS. 


IN  THE  BLUE  GROTTO.  289 

pleasure  boat  tossed  idly  upon  the  oily  waves  a 
half  cable's  length  away. 

When  the  pinnace  of  the  stranger  boat  touched 
the  side  of  the  "Santa  Lucia,"  Landon's  own  boat 
was  manned  alongside. 

Striding  across  the  deck,  the  young  Pasha  said, 
"Mr.  Brandon,  my  men  will  put  you  on  your  own 
boat !  I  will  bring  the  ladies  off !" 

"I'll  not  submit!    I'll  not  submit!"  he  roared. 

"Then,  sir,"  coldly  said  Landon,  "I  will  pub- 
lish to  the  world  the  fact  that  you  sought  only 
your  own  safety,  and  let  the  two  helpless  women 
shift  for  themselves!  You  are  a  pattern  cow- 
ard!" 

Without  another  word,  Brandon  jumped  into 
the  skiff,  and  was  swiftly  rowed  to  the  other  cut- 
ter !  "I  wish  to  sail  at  once,"  he  howled  when  a 
hundred  yards  separated  them. 

Stepping  lightly  aft,  Sidney  Landon  called  to 
Mrs.  Melville:  "It  is  time  to  go!  I  will  put  you 
on  your  own  boat !  You  will  find  a  decent  little 
hotel  at  'La  Marina  Grande.' 

"I  recommend  a  good  night's  sleep  on  shore — 
and  that  you  both  take  the  steamer  for  Naples, 

19 


290  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

and  let  that  picked-up  pleasure  boat  follow  home 
without  you !    The  crew  are  incompetent  fools." 

Silently,  and  with  downcast  eyes, — Agnes 
Hawthorn  clung  to  Landon's  arm,  as  supported 
by  Gertrude  Melville,  she  tottered  to  the  pinnace. 

The  fair  face  looked  pinched  and  ghastly,  peep- 
ing out  of  its  rough  sailor  capote,  and  the  golden 
hair  clung  in  graceful  wreaths  around  her  stately 
head. 

Not  a  word  was  spoken  as  they  reached  the 
side  of  "La  Aguila  de  Oro." 

Gertrude  Melville's  face  flushed  crimson  as 
Landon  handed  them  over  the  side. 

With  a  truculent  scowl,  Robert  Brandon 
clasped  his  drooping  charge  in  his  arms. 

The  quick-witted  Consular  lady  saw  that  Sid- 
ney Landon  would  not  willingly  step  upon  the 
deck  of  the  hulking  coward's  boat.  The  boatmen 
were  already  loosening  the  yacht's  sails. 

Gertrude  Melville's  face  was  flushed  in  very 
shame  as  Agnes  Hawthorn  stood  there  as  if 
transfixed,  gazing  mutely  at  the  man  who  had 
saved  her  from  the  fanged  rocks  of  the  Capri 
shore.  "You  will  come  to  us  at  the  Hotel  Bris- 


IN  THE  BLUE  GROTTO.  291 

tol,"  Gertrude  cried.  "You  will  let  us  thank  you ! 
I  must  also  reward  your  brave  servant."  • 

'7  am  leaving  Italy  at  once"  coldly  said  Lan- 
don,  his  form  stiffening  into  the  soldier's  atten- 
tion. 

"But,  your  address,  we  can  write,"  pleaded 
Gertrude,  with  hopeless  tears  welling  into  her 
eyes. 

"You  owe  me  nothing" — gravely  said  Lan- 
don.  "I  have  waited  a  year  for  a  letter  which 
never  came!" 

Agnes  Hawthorn  started  forward  as  if  she 
would  speak,  but  Brandon's  rancorous  voice  broke 
in :  "I  can  allow  no  communication  of  my  niece 
with  a  man  who  was  disgracefully  dismissed 
from  the  Army  and  blackballed  as  a  blackguard 
from  the  Cercle  de  Rome. 

"A  man  who  was  driven  to  resign  by  the 
United  States  Minister  and  who  fled  from  Rome." 

Landon  leaped  from  the  frail  skiff  and  grasped 
the  dotard's  arm,  wrenching  it  till  he  writhed  in 
pain. 

"You  think  yourself  safe  here!"  he  cried.  "I 
shall  come  to  Rome  and  make  you  eat  those 


292  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

words  before  the  Minister  himself,  if  I  have  to 
drag  you  by  the  heels !" 

"For  God's  sake !  Listen !  There  has  been  a 
terrible  mistake!"  murmured  Agnes  Hawthorn, 
as  she  laid  her  chilled  hand  upon  the  young  man's 
arm. 

"You  know  why  I  left  Italy!"  he  sadly  said,  as 
he  turned,  leaped  into  his  boat,  and  was  swiftly 
rowed  away. 

Then  the  heiress  tottered  and  fell  back  into 
Gertrude  Melville's  arms. 

"What  did  he  mean?"  she  murmured.  "He 
surely  received  my  letter!" 

The  boat  gathered  headway,  and  soon  Lan- 
don's  yacht  was  seen  afar,  a  white-winged  rover 
of  the  deep,  heading  toward  Sorrento ! 

The  two  women  cowered  in  the  cabin  of  "La 
Aguila"  with  their  eyes  fastened  upon  the  reced- 
ing silver  sail,  as  they  were  speeding  on  to 
Marina  Grande. 

"It  is  a  world  of  lies,"  moaned  Agnes  Haw- 
thorn. 

"He  must  have  received  my  letter, — and, — yet, 
— I  owe  him  now  an  added  debt  which  never  can 
be  paid !  Shame — shame!" 


IN  THE  BLUE  GROTTO.  293 

That  night  in  the  Hotel  Gran  Brettagna,  the 
unhappy  women  lived  over  the  wretched  year 
whose  harvest  had  only  been  unhappiness. 

Their  door  was  resolutely  locked,  and  the  hu- 
miliated Brandon  panted  for  the  morning  when 
the  steamer  would  bear  him  back  to  his  "alter 
ego"  at  the  Hotel  Bristol,  in  Naples. 

He  knew  that  his  conduct  had  been  that  of  a 
cur,  and, — he  feared  the  deadly  light  on  Sidney 
Landon's  face. 

"My  God !  If  he  follows  it  up, — what  may  not 
happen  ?  I  must  get  back  and  warn  Clark."  He 
had  seen  the  pitiless  wrath  upon  Landon's  stern 
face !  The  ass  had  brayed  once  too  often. 

"/  shall  leave  Italy  instantly, — Gertrude,"  said 
Agnes  Hawthorn,  as  she  buried  her  glowing  face 
on  her  friend's  bosom  and  burst  into  bitter  tears. 

A  sudden  happy  thought  thrilled  her  friend's 
agitated  bosom. 

"If  there  has  been  wrong,  I  will  set  it  right! 
The  Consul  at  Naples  will  surely  aid  me!  The 
Naples  boatmen  will  all  know  where  the  'Santa 
Lucia'  is  harbored !" 

Gertrude  Melville  called  back  the  grave  flash  of 
Landon's  eye  as  he  leaped  upon  Brandon.  "There 


294  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

has  been  some  hideous  wrong  done  here,"  she 
mused.  "And  I  shall  right  it,  God  helping  me! 
That  man  is  no  craven, — no  scoundrel !  There  is 
truth  and  honor  in  his  eyes !" 

Pacing  his  walk  under  the  silvery  olive  groves 
of  Sorrento  that  night,  Sidney  Landon  suddenly 
called  his  valet  to  his  side.  "Get  all  ready  to  lock 
the  place  up  for  a  month.  Pay  off  and  furlough 
the  yacht's  crew !  We  are  going  out  into  the  gay 
world ! 

"I  go  to  Naples,  Rome,  perhaps  Nice  and  Mar- 
seilles !  We  leave  in  the  morning !  Pack  all  my 
traps!  And  get  me  now  clipped  and  shaved  'en 
militaire !'  I  am  a  Pasha  no  longer !" 

All  that  long  night  the  soldier  dreamed  of  the 
blue  waves  of  the  Grotto,  where  under  the  som- 
ber-arched roof  he  struggled  for  the  life  of  the 
golden-haired  darling  who  lay  a  helpless  Undine, 
a  silver  Naiad  Queen,  on  his  shoulder ! 


IN  THE  BLUE  GROTTO.  295 

CHAPTER    XII. 

UNEXPECTED   ALLIES. 

As  the  touch  of  the  Fairy  Prince  woke  the 
sleeping  Beauty  from  her  trance  of  years,  so  the 
words  of  sweet  Agnes  Hawthorn  roused  Sidney 
Landon  from  the  morbid  death  in  life  of  the  last 
year.  He  forgot  all  its  bitter  harvest  of  sorrows. 

He  only  remembered  the  young  goddess  with 
her  half  outstretched  arms  crying,  "Listen!  For 
God's  sake!  There  has  been  some  terrible  mis- 
take!" 

Landon  was  awake  at  dawn,  and,  walking  in 
his  garden,  gazed  out  upon  the  heaving  bosom  of 
the  blue  gulf. 

The  fisher's  children  were  singing  in  the  rocks 
at  play,  the  silver  sails  of  the  fishing  boats  flecked 
the  sapphire  zone,  and  his  heart  bounded  as  he 
gazed  at  the  happy  islands  hovering  far  out  at  sea. 

"Here,  Ischia  smiles,  o'er  liquid  miles, — 
And  yonder, — bluest  of  the  skies, — 
Calon  Capri  waits,  her  sapphire  gates,— 
Beguiling  to  her  bright  estates." 

A  bird  broke  out  near  him,  singing  in  a  blos- 
somed tree, — the  song  went  into  his  soul  and  a 


296  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

fierce  new  delight  in  life,  a  fever  of  delicious  un- 
rest took  possession  of  him. 

For  the  first  time  he  realized  the  concrete  power 
of  money. 

"I  am  rich  now.  I  can  fight  a  good  fight.  I 
have  'the  sinews  of  war!'  She  shall  know  all, 
and  then,  I  will  leave  My  Lady  Disdain,  but  not  in 
shame! 

"As  for  Robert  Brandon — ,"  he  turned  and 
sped  into  the  house. 

Jack  Haddon  was  already  bustling  around, 
and,  at  nine,  when  Sidney  Landon  stepped  into 
his  carriage,  he  directed  the  van  to  follow  with 
the  luggage  to  Parker's  Hotel,  at  Naples. 

The  sturdy  valet,  Haddon,  was  gaily  humming 
an  old  regimental  war  song  as  he  watched  the 
new  light  upon  his  master's  brow.  "Aye,"  he 
chirruped.  "There's  nothing  like  a  lass  to  wake 
a  man  up!  There'll  be  rich  fun  soon !  The  mars- 
ter's  a  proper  young  swell  enough  now !" 

It  was  true  that  Landon  was  reproduced  as  the 
glass  of  fashion  and  the  mould  of  form  in  that 
ultra  English  "style"  which  is  considered  strictly 
"High  Life"  by  the  continental  nobility. 

Landon  gazed  back  at  "Sorrento  le  gentile." 


UNEXPECTED  ALLIES.  297 

He  had  found  peace  and  nepenthe, — "sweet  sur- 
cease of  sorrow," — among  those  fragrant  groves 
of  lemon  and  orange  lining  the  cliffs  of  Torquato 
Tasso's  natal  town. 

He  gaily  waved  his  handkerchief  as  the  captain 
of  the  "Santa  Lucia"  dipped  the  Khedive's  flag 
to  the  metamorphosed  Pasha. 

As  the  carriage  rolled  along  he  mentally  can- 
vassed the  situation.  "There's  Morgan, — there's 
also  game  Charley  Hollingsworth !  I'll  confide 
only  in  them!  Hollingsworth  will  soon  dig  up 
the  secret  of  the  Club  infamy. 

"I  think  that  I  will  drop  the  trap  over  Signore 
Jacopo  Maspero,  now!  It  will  take  me  about  a 
month  to  communicate  with  Colonel  Atwater, 
and,  then,  I  will  face  his  High  Mightiness,  Min- 
ister Van  Buren  Hartford." 

One  side  of  the  case  presented  delicate  features. 
"Melville  has  been  but  a  faint-hearted  friend! 
But,  for  Gertrude's  sake, — for  very  gratitude,  I 
must  leave  him  out  of  the  row !  He  only  lives  in 
his  dabbled  blues  and  yellows,  his  faded  grays 
and  his  splotched  crimson  lake! 

"At  any  rate,  I  can  save  him  from  future  loss, 


298  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

perhaps  even  shame,  by  unmasking  this  Roman 
wolf  Maspero." 

The  ferret-eyed  Haddon  keenly  watched  his 
young  master,  as  the  train  sped  on  from  Castella- 
mare  to  Naples. 

"He  'ave  the  look  of  a  hunting  cheetah  in  his 
eyes,  now!  Blow  me!  There's  somethink  up!" 
mused  Haddon,  as  he  gathered  the  traps  together 
when  the  train  reached  the  station. 

Landon  had  forgotten  all  the  superb  panorama 
of  the  pictured  shore. 

He  saw  not  Vesuvius,  hovering  there  a  mighty 
menace  of  Nature,  "with  outstretched  hands, 
o'erlooking  the  volcanic  lands," — buried  Pompeii, 
revisiting  the  glimpses  of  the  moon, — sad  Hercu- 
laneum,  still  entombing  the  luxurious  community 
who  mutely  died,  and  the  unequaled  sweep  of 
that  bay,  whose  proud  motto  is  "Vedere  Napoli  e 
poi,  morire." 

He  was  now  on  the  trail  of  his  secret  enemies 
at  last, — and  no  lean  Sioux  ever  crouched  more 
tiger-like  in  the  path  of  the  headlong  Pawnee 
braves  than  Landon,  now  for  the  first  time  scent- 
ing the  traitor's  path  encircling  his  way  in  life. 


UNEXPECTED  ALLIES.  299 

"77/  scatter  the  wolf  pack!"  he  swore  in  his  an- 
gered heart. 

"Faster,  faster,"  urged  Landon,  as  the  carriage 
sped  down  the  Rue  Vittorio  Emanuele  toward 
"Parker's." 

He  feared  now  that  Robert  Brandon  might 
have  sneaked  over  from  Capri  and  taken  the 
morning  train  for  Rome. 

"By  Heavens!  he  shall  face  the  music  now" 
cried  Landon,  as  his  spirit  burned  within  him. 

No  sooner  had  he  registered  at  Parker's  than 
he  dispatched  the  acute  Haddon  on  a  reconnois- 
sance  to  the  Hotel  Bristol. 

He  was  seated  in  the  courtyard,  under  the  lime 
trees,  enjoying  a  cigar,  when  a  handsome  fellow 
in  the  undress  uniform  of  the  United  States  Navy 
tripped  over  the  tall  soldier's  loosely  extended 
legs. 

"Harry  Wainwright,  by  all  that's  holy !"  cried 
Landon,  leaping  to  his  feet. 

In  ten  minutes,  the  two  chums  were  deep  in  the 
reminiscences  of  the  fifteen  years,  since  the  one 
left  Annapolis,— and  the  other,— gaily  said 
good-bye  to  "Benny  Havens,  oh." 

They  had  sampled  the  choicest  brands  of  the 


300  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

cellar  before  spry  Jack  Haddon  glided  into  the 
courtyard. 

"Party  just  in  on  steamer  from  Capri,  sir. 
Ladies  resting.  Tickets  bespoke  for  the  evening 
train.  The  gentleman  have  just  gone  up  to  Castel 
St.  Elmo,  with  a  hotel  shouter,  to  see  the  old 
fort." 

"Get  me  a  good  dog  whip,  a  good  stout  one," 
cried  Landon.  "Have  a  carriage  at  the  door  at 
once,  the  best  you  can  get ! 

"See  here,  Wainwright,"  said  Landon,  his  eyes 
gleaming  with  a  newly  aroused  passion.  "I  want 
you  as  a  witness  to  a  little  matter  here." 

"Fire  away,  my  boy.  I'm  with  you,"  cheerily 
said  Wainwright.  "If  it's  anything  serious  I  can 
send  off  to  the  'Kearsarge'  and  get  another  of  our 
officers!" 

"Oh,  you'll  do,  you  restless  old  fire  eater," 
laughed  Landon.  "I  only  wish  you  to  look  on !" 

In  five  minutes  Haddon  had  returned.  "  'Ere's 
the  best  I  could  do,  sir!"  he  whispered,  handing 
his  master  a  snaky  looking  contrivance  of  water 
buffalo  hide. 

"Haddon,  you're  a  jewel,"  calmly  remarked 


UNEXPECTED  ALLIES.  301 

Landon.  "Get  us  a  bundle  of  good  cigars  and  a 
flask  of  cognac !  Look  alive  now !" 

Wainwright  eyed  Landon  curiously  as  the  car- 
riage slowly  climbed  the  Monte  Santo. 

He  turned  when  they  reached  the  gates  of  old 
St.  Elmo. 

Far  below  them  lay  the  unrivaled  amphithea- 
ter of  old  Rome's  sin-haunted  dens  of  summer 
luxury. 

The  forts  of  Castello  dell'  Oro, — Nuovo, — del 
Carmine,  and  Capuano,  flew  the  Italian  flag, 
while  Britain's  blood-red  banner  burned  over  a 
huge  ironclad,  and  the  star  flag  fluttered  over  the 
saucy  Kearsarge,  waiting  yet  to  lay  her  bones  on 
the  white-fanged  reef  of  Roncador. 

Haddon  had  slipped  into  the  old  keep;  and 
soon  came  gliding  back.  "He's  coming  out,  now, 
sir — this  'ere's  his  carriage!" 

"Take  that  fellow  over  and  give  him  a  bottle 
of  wine,"  carelessly  said  Landon,  tossing  his  fac- 
totum ten  lire. 

Lieutenant  Commander  Wainwright  laughed 
merrily  as  he  lit  a  fresh  cigar.  "Cutting  off  the 
enemy's  retreat.  Say,  old  man, — be  quick  about 


302  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

it!    I'm  going  over  at  three  to  Pompeii  with  Col 
onel  and  Mrs.  Atwater." 

Sidney  Landon  leaned  back  in  the  carriage  as 
Robert  Brandon  came  hulking  over  the  lowered 
drawbridge.  He  gazed  around  for  his  missing 
carriage,  and,  while  the  cicerone  went  one  way, 
Brandon  hastened  down  the  winding  roadway. 

"Quick,  quick,"  cried  Landon.  "Do  you  mean 
Miles  Atwater  of  the  Grays  ?" 

"Certainly"  calmly  said  the  astonished  naval 
officer.  "Didn't  you  know  that  Mary  Atwater 
was  my  cousin?" 

"Thank  God!"  cried  Sidney  Landon.  "Just 
the  man!  They  are  unexpected  allies!  Where 
are  they?" 

"At  the  Bristol,  of  course,"  proudly  replied 
Wainwright.  "They  are  visiting  me,  and  are 
going  to  take  a  cruise  over  to  Tripoli  on  the  old 
sea  dog!" 

"See  here,  Wainwright.  That's  the  chap! 
Drive  right  down  to  him!  I'll  head  him  off! 
Don't  get  out  of  the  carriage.  Just  be  a  witness 
though  to  what  he  says !  That's  all!" 

While  Wainwright  urged  the  carriage  on,  Sid- 
ney Landon,  leaping  nimbly  down  the  tables  of 


UNEXPECTED  ALLIES.  303 

the  slope,  cut  off  the  further  progress  of  Mr. 
Robert  Brandon. 

The  slanderer  turned  pale  when  he  saw  the 
metamorphosed  Landon.  In  his  craven  heart,  he 
felt  that  his  victim  had  turned  upon  him  at  last. 
He  essayed  to  pass,  but  Sidney  Landon's  hand 
was  on  his  collar  now,  with  a  vise-like  grip. 

Wainwright  gazed  down  in  passive  wonder 
from  the  victoria,  halted  so  as  to  cut  off  the  art- 
ist's flight. 

"Gad!  The  fellow's  twice  his  size,"  mused 
Wainwright,  gazing  at  Landon's  idle  right  hand 
holding  the  doubled  up  buffalo  hide  blacksnake. 

Landon's  face  was  white  with  wrath  as  he 
slowly  brought  out  his  sentences.  "You  said,  sir, 
before  ladies, — yesterday, — that  I  had  been  dis- 
missed the  United  States  Army, — blackballed  as 
a  blackguard  from  the  Cercle  de  Rome, — and 
forced  out  of  the  Consular  service  by  your  pro- 
tector, the  Minister  Resident ! 

"Now,  sir,  I  want  your  authority  for  each  one 
of  those  damned,  craven  lies!  Quick,  too!" 

It  was  ill  done  in  Brandon  to  try  to  swing  his 
huge  bulk  back! 

With  a  merciless  swish,  the  whip  caught  him 


304  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

full  in  the  face,  the  red  blood  leaping  into  the 
triple  welt! 

"That  for  the  army  lie!"  almost  shrieked  Lan- 
don. 

Again  the  whip  descended,  while  Brandon 
yelled  with  pain.  The  lash  cut  a  strip  from  his 
coat  sleeve! 

"That  for  the  club  lie,  you  brute, — and,  that, 
for  the  story  about  the  Minister!" 

Cowering  and  bleeding,  Brandon  begged  for 
mercy. 

"I  ought  to  shoot  you  like  a  dog  here,  you 
cur !  You  have  stabbed  me  behind  my  back,  when 
lying  at  the  point  of  death!  Only  your  wife 
saves  your  life!  And,  hark  ye!  Bridle  her 
tongue!  Now,  you  coward, — out  with  it!  Your 
authority  for  the  first." 

The  lash  came  down  again  before  Brandon,  in 
sheer  terror,  murmured: 

"Clark  had  letters;  he  showed  them  to  my 
zvife!" 

"And  she  showed  them  all  over  Rome,  you 
sneaking  character  thief!"  yelled  Landon,  as  he 
flogged  the  brute's  shoulders. 


UNEXPECTED  ALLIES.  305 

"That  for  her  social  assiduity!  Your  back  is 
broad  enough!" 

"Now,  sir!     The  Club  story!" 

Brandon  clutched  Wainwright's  knees,  and 
begged,  "Save  me!  By  God!  I'll  tell  all!" 

"Tell  it, — to  me,"  cried  Landon,  his  wrath  pos- 
sessing him  like  a  demon. 

"It  was  Montaverde — the  Italian  nobleman!" 

"And,  you  never  went  to  Hollingsworth  or 
Pallavinci  to  find  out  the  truth?  You  claim  to 
be  an  American !  You  knew  that  my  name  was 
shoved  in  there  as  a  mere  idle  compliment! 
Damn  you!  I'll  drag  you  to  Montaverde — and, 
he  will  prove  you  a  liar!  You  were  paid, — to 
take  this  damned  scandal  in  commission. 

"And,  now,  sir,  my  dismissal  by  the  Minister 
Resident !  Did  he  or  Melville  tell  you  that  ? 

"Did  you  ever  ask  Morgan  to  show  you  my 
dispatches  resigning,  or  the  return  dispatches  of 
the  Department?" 

Nothing  was  heard  but  Brandon's  jibbering 
cries  for  mercy!  Landon,  in  disgust,  threw  his 
whip  over  the  edge  of  the  cliff!  He  held  up 
Brandon's  craven  head  to  gaze  into  his  eyes! 

"I  am  coming  back  to  Rome!    If  by  the  time 
20 


306  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

I  get  there  you  have  not  publicly  withdrawn  all 
these  stories,  both  at  the  American  Club, — to 
Melville  and  to  Hollingsworth, — I  will  post  you 
as  a  liar,  a  coward,  and  a  slanderer,  and  tell  the 
story  of  your  leaving  two  helpless  women  to 
drown  in  the  Blue  Grotto!  Off  with  you!" 

With  a  last  powerful  shove, — Landon  sent  the 
coward  tumbling  head  over  heels,  and  signed  to 
Jack  Haddon  to  mount  the  box. 

They  drove  rapidly  down  the  hill,  while  Had- 
don murmured,  under  his  breath : 

"Aunt  Maria!  But,  'e  got  it  on  his  nob!  'E 
h'ain't  much  of  a  fighter, — that  'un." 

When  the  carriage  stopped  at  Parker's,  Landon 
held  out  his  hand  to  Wainwright  and  laughed : 

"You're  a  good  silent  witness! 

"Now,  Atwater  is  my  old  Colonel!  I'll  send 
you  up  in  the  carriage  to  the  Bristol !  I  will  fol- 
low in  ten  minutes.  Don't  let  them  leave  till  I 
come!  Tell  Miles  and  his  wife  that  I  must  see 
them  for  a  few  moments,  before  they  leave  for 
Pompeii." 

"You're  a  little  bit  of  a  fire-eater,  yourself,  my 
boy!"  laughed  Wainwright.  "I'll  bet  ten  dollars 


UNEXPECTED  ALLIES.  307 

there's  a  pretty  woman  behind  all  this  ferocity  of 
yours!" 

But  Landon  only  shook  his  head  in  a  gloomy 
silence. 

"He  deserved  all  he  got !"  was  his  only  remark. 

Fifteen  minutes  later,  Sidney  Landon  was 
clasped  in  the  bear  hug  of  Colonel  Miles  Atwater ! 

The  sturdy,  solid  old  soldier  danced  around  his 
newly  found  "lost  lamb,"  while  matronly  Mary 
Atwater  sat  there,  with  tears  of  happiness  in  her 
clear,  brown  eyes! 

"We  thought  you  were  in  the  Orient,  or  God 
knows  where,"  puffed  Colonel  Miles,  as  he  pro- 
ceeded to  mix  a  cavalry  toddy. 

"And  you  must  come  and  stay  here.  Gertrude 
Melville  is  here,  with  some  friends,  the  Bran- 
dons, and  a  young  lady." 

While  the  Colonel  of  the  "Grays"  impartially 
divided  the  results  of  his  cavalry  toddy  making, 
the  ex-Pasha  led  Mrs.  Mary  Atwater  aside. 

"You  must  go  in  and  tell  Mrs.  Melville  that  I 
must  see  her  alone,  here,  this  afternoon,  in  your 
rooms,  while  you  go  away  to  Pompeii!" 

Landon's  grave  face  alone  kept  the  good  army 
wife  from  thinking  that  he  had  lost  his  wits ! 


308  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"I   need  you  and   Miles,  to-night,"   he  said. 

"This  is  the  turning  point  of  my  life !  You  see, 
I  can  not  go  into  the  Brandon's  apartments. 

"I  have  just  thrashed  him,  for  a  slanderer,  with- 
in an  inch  of  his  life! 

"Now,  he  will  try  to  sneak  his  party  out,  back 
to  Rome,  this  evening,  but  I  must  see  her! 

"Bring  her  in  here,  and  I  will  speak  to  her 
before  you!" 

When  the  two  gentlemen  drained  their  glasses 
to  the  old  frontier  toast,  "How?" — Landon  said 
simply : 

"Miles,  I  have  just  fallen  into  a  million  dollars! 
My  uncle  in  St.  Louis,  of  whose  existence  I  was 
unaware,  has  done  this  neat  little  trick  of  financial 
legerdemain  for  me! 

"Poor  fellow!  I'm  sorry  to  say  that  he  does 
not  need  it  any  more !  I'd  divide  his  own  money 
with  him  if  he  were  alive!" 

"See  here,  Sidney,"  jovially  cried  the  Colonel. 
"We  never  had  a  dollar  in  the  Grays  that  we  did 
not  have  to  fight  the  paymaster  for ! 

"You've  got  to  come  back  to  us,  that's  clear, — 
you  imitation  Jay  Gould!  We  will  let  you  pre- 


UNEXPECTED  ALLIES.  309 

sent  us  a  decent  set  of  band  instruments.  Some- 
thing that  we  never  had!" 

And  Miles  Atwater  drained  his  glass,  pulled 
out  his  sheer  sweeping  mustache,  and  gazed 
fondly  at  his  crack  Captain! 

"The  offer  of  the  President  still  holds  good. 
Poor  old  Rufe  Hatcher  is  wearing  half  mourning 
for  you,  still!" 

"It  all  depends  upon  Mrs.  Mary  and  yourself, 
now,  but  keep  my  good  fortune  a  profound  secret, 
as  yet,"  cheerfully  replied  Landon.  "I'll  tell  you 
all  to-night! 

''Yes!    There  is  another, — one  other  person!" 

"Great  Scott !  The  thing  is  done,  then,"  roared 
Atwater,  as  he  grasped  Landon  in  his  brawny 
arms. 

"We  are  all  right,  and  I  think  YOU  can  answer 
for  'the  other  person  L'  " 

"Not  yet, — not  so  surely"  laughed  Landon, 
as  Mrs.  Atwater  glided  back  silently  into  the 
room. 

"Miles,"  said  she.  "Go  down  and  wait  for 
Lieutenant  Wainwright!  I  will  join  you  in  a 
few  moments.  You  must  not  miss  this  excur- 
sion!" 


310  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"I  will  move  up  here  from  Parker's  to-morrow, 
Commandante,"  gaily  cried  Landon,  as  the 
Colonel  filled  his  two  cigar  cases,  grasped  his 
tourist  umbrella,  and  departed  with  a  sly  wink  to 
his  rediscovered  Senior  Captain. 

"You  were  right,  Sidney,"  murmured  Mrs. 
Miles.  "The  whole  party  is  going  home  to-night ! 
Poor  Mr.  Brandon  had  'a  frightful  fall  out  of 
the  carriage, — up  at  Saint  Elmo/  and  his  wife 
has  gone  to  him  down  at  the  station!  He  is  al- 
ready in  the  coupe  lit  of  the  train,  with  a  Doctor." 

"That's  his  story,  is  it,"  coldly  remarked  Lan- 
don. "He  is  a  glib  liar ! 

"Well,  Miss  Hawthorn  shall  know  nothing  of 
it,  but,  Gertrude  Melville  must  know  all,  and,  to- 
night,— you  and  Colonel  Miles  will  agree  with 
me  that  I  did  right. 

"Trust  me,  dear  Madonna ;  your  heart  will  be 
with  me  in  the  work  I  have  to  do!  It  is  for  the 
honor  of  the  dear  old  Grays." 

"I  did  not  tell  you  that  Lieutenant  Colonel 
Prindle  retires  next  month !"  said  Mrs.  Atwater. 

Sidney  Landon  grasped  both  the  dear  kindly 
hands  and  kissed  them. 

"Then,  when  he  leaves  the  Regiment,  I  may 


UNEXPECTED  ALLIES.  311 

come  back  to  it,  but,  I  make  no  promises  until 
you  know  all!" 

Sweet-faced  Mary  Atwater  noiselessly  left  the 
room,  while  Landon  murmured: 

"Poor  old  Black  Bill!  He  has  had  a  hard 
row  to  hoe,  with  the  implacable  Dora  as  his 
spouse!  If  God  would  only  take  her  to  His 
bosom !" 

But,  Landon  sprang  to  his  feet,  forgetting  all 
as  the  pale-faced  Gertrude  Melville  followed  Mrs. 
Atwater  into  the  room. 

"Before  you  go,  dear  Aunt  Mary,"  said  the 
ex-Pasha,  with  an  affectionate  smile,  "I  wish 
to  say  that  my  whole  future  depends  upon  you 
two  true  hearts — so,  that  after  each  has  helped 
me  in  her  own  way, — you  can  tell  each  other  all 
you  know, — but,  not  now !  Leave  Gertrude  Mel- 
ville to  me  to-day,  as  a  beloved  sister !" 

"We  may  hold  your  future  in  our  keeping, 
Captain  Landon,"  said  the  fair  Gertrude,  "but 
your  happiness  you  will  yet  owe  to  the  woman 
who  has  just  told  me,  through  her  tears, — 'I 
dare  not  meet  him !  I  owe  my  very  life  to  him, 
and  I  have  wrecked  his  happiness !' ' 

"I  only  wish,"  gravely  answered  Landon,  "to 


312  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

set  my  honor  right  before  the  world !  Then, — / 
drop  out  of  her  life  forever!  I  shall  go  back  into 
the  army,  and  try  and  die  under  the  colors  of  the 
old  Regiment!" 

The  overjoyed  Mary  Atwater  threw  her  arms 
around  his  neck  and  kissed  him. 

"And  you'll  be  Major  of  your  old  Battalion! 
The  President  has  promised!" 

The  stentorian  voice  of  Miles  Atwater  was 
heard  below,  loudly  calling  for  his  "winsome 
marrow,"  and  Mrs.  Melville  was  left  alone  with 
the  still  excited  soldier. 

"Why  do  you  avoid  Agnes  Hawthorn,  Sid- 
ney?" the  graceful  woman  said,  seating  herself 
at  his  side,  as  he  dropped  his  head  into  his  hands. 

"I  shall  right  my  honor, — I  shall  trace  out  this 
cabal  of  damning  wickedness,  and  then, — put  the 
seas  between  us !"  sadly  cried  Landon.  "She  has 
a  marble  heart!" 

"A  marble  heart,"  echoed  the  spirited  woman, 
springing  up,  her  silken  hair  loosening  and  fall- 
ing over  her  shoulders  in  a  glorious  cascade! 

"How  far  would  you  have  a  woman  stoop  to 
show  her  heart,  waiting  with  its  opened  doors?" 

"Listen"  cried  Landon,  in  an  agony  of  pain 


UNEXPECTED  ALLIES.  313 

and  doubt.  "I  waited  a  whole  week  at  Nice, 
when  I  wrote  her  that  her  slightest  word  would 
call  me  back  to  Rome!  /  would  have  told  her 
all!  I  could  have  gone  on  to  Egypt  by  Brindisi ! 
Oh!  the  hell  of  that  week  of  doubt!  I  haunted 
the  Post  and  Telegraph !  Not  a  word !  Silence, 
— the  silence  of  contempt! 

"But,  that  Stone  had  organized  my  expedition 
up  the  Nile,  I  would  have  killed  myself  there, 
— but,  I  would  then  have  been  ranked  a  coward 
who  feared  the  Abyssinian  spearmen!" 

A  strange  light  shone  in  Gertrude  Melville's 
eyes ! 

"Tell  me  what  you  propose  to  do?"  she  said, 
her  bosom  heaving  with  a  new  and  strange  emo- 
tion. "I  have  thrashed  the  truth  out  of  this  dog 
Brandon  here  to-day!  I  know  now  who  is  be- 
hind one  of  the  lies !  I  will  settle  with  that  per- 
son,— myself!" 

His  face  was  as  hard  as  flint. 

"But  you,  Gertrude  Melville,  are  the  man  of 
your  family !  You  have  a  gallant  heart !  I  shall 
confer  with  the  Atwaters  and  follow  you  up  to 
Rome. 

"I  shall  go  to  Frascati  or  Tivoli,  and  call  Mor- 


314  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

gan  and  Hollingsworth  to  me.  Arthur  Melville 
must,  himself,  as  well  as  Minister  Hartford,  fully 
and  openly  make  it  clear  to  all  Rome  that  I  re- 
signed, voluntarily, — that  the  State  Department 
telegraphed  back  and  begged  me  to  reconsider. 

"This  grave  wrong  must  be  publicly  set  right ! 
If  it  is  not  done, — I  shall  publish  in  the  Roman 
papers  my  telegram  and  letter  of  resignation,  and 
the  telegrams  and  dispatches  of  the  Department ! 

"If  either  of  these  officials  refuse,  I  shall  certify 
the  whole  matter  up  to  the  Secretary  of  State 
himself,  and  request  that  the  Department  write 
to  the  Italian  Bureau  of  Foreign  Affairs  and  vin- 
dicate me,  and  I  shall  insist  upon  being  presented 
to  King  Humbert !" 

"It  is  the  least  that  you  could  ask,"  cried  the 
indignant  Gertrude.  "Clark's  veiled  influence  is 
behind  Hartford's  ungentlemanly  treatment  of 
you!  I  heard  all  from  Morgan, — and, — even 
that  spider  Maspero  has  helped  to  ruin  you. 

"Oh!  If  Arthur  were  only  more  practical! 
But  I  will  engage  that  this  is  done,  and  that  the 
Hartfords  give  an  official  dinner  for  you,  with 
all  the  Legation  and  Consular  Staff." 

Landon's  brow  lightened. 


UNEXPECTED  ALLIES.  315 

"God  bless  you,"  he  softly  said.  "The  club 
matter  Hollingsworth  and  I  will  handle, — and  all 
Rome  shall  ring  with  that!  I  can  handle  that 
easily ! 

"The  other  matter  must  be  met  by  the  Presi- 
dent reappointing  me  in  the  Army, — but  not  until 
the  whole  slander  has  been  probed. 

"Only  the  Atwaters  can  aid  me  in  that." 

"If  you  only  knew  Agnes  Hawthorn's  heart, — 
if  you  would  only  clear  up  the  mystery  of  Ethel 
Raynor!"  cried  Gertrude. 

"It  is  that  which  has  torn  the  darling  girl's 
bosom !  The  letters  shown  her  were  so  convinc- 
ing,— coming  from  the  wife  of  a  high  officer  in 
your  own  Regiment!  The  story  was  so  heart- 
less, so " 

"Stop,  stop,"  whispered  Landon,  his  face  as 
white  as  marble.  "No  one  shall  speak  of  the 
dead !  Let  them  defame  the  living !  I  begin  to 
see  the  trail  of  the  serpent!  It  will  take  two 
months  to  unseal  the.  past,  and,  then,  I  shall  face 
Agnes  Hawthorn  with  the  truth.  She  has  suf- 
fered? God!  I  have  been  mad  for  a  year! 

"And  she  alone  shall  have  the  truth!  How 
I  left  the  army  in  perfect  honor,  the  whole  social 


316  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

world  here  shall  know, — why  I  left  the  army, 
no  one  but  Agnes  Hawthorn  ever  shall  know ! 

"But  I  will  lay  the  lash  of  punishment  upon 
those  who  have  come  between  us !  The  name  of 
the  informant  was  Mrs.  Dora  Prindle?" 

Landon  read  the  truth  in  Gertrude  Melville's 
eyes. 

Two  hours  later,  he  escorted  the  bright-hearted 
woman  back  to  her  own  apartment!  He  paused 
at  the  door. 

"Give  her  this"  he  said,  handing  Gertrude  a 
little  parcel.  "Morgan  will  privately  tell  you  of 
my  movements.  I  shall  know  all.  I  will  be  at 
Frascati  or  Tivoli  until  your  husband  and  the 
Minister  have  acted ! 

"Then,  I  will  come  to  Rome  for  justice  and 
vengeance !" 

Two  loving  women  wept  on  each  other's 
bosoms  when  Agnes  Hawthorn  opened  the  little 
packet!  Her  golden  ring  and  filmy  lace  hand- 
kerchief were  there! 

But  they  never  knew  that  the  withered  violets 
lay  on  the  soldier's  breast  when  he  faced  the  mad 
Abyssinians  at  Gura, — and — that  they  were  still 


UNEXPECTED  ALLIES.  317 

resting  there,  while  the  orphaned  neiress  sobbed, 
"It  is  all  over!  I  can  never  see  him  again!" 

Both  ladies  wondered,  as  two  magnificent 
bouquets  were  handed  irito  their  carriage  as  they 
drove  to  the  station!  Gertrude's  was  a  mass  of 
blush  roses,  but  Miss  Hawthorn's  was  a  superb 
cluster  of  Parma  violets,  an  offering  fit  for  a 
prince ! 

The  orphaned  beauty  avoided  her  friend's  eyes 
as  she  read  the  mute  message  of  the  flowers ! 

It  was  after  midnight  when  the  Atwaters  fin- 
ished their  long  council  of  war  with  Landon. 

"I  am  zvith  you  to  the  death,"  cried  the  hearty 
old  Colonel.  "I'll  write  poor  Black  Bill  a  letter 
to-night!  By  Gad!  He  shall  certify  the  truth 
to  me!" 

And  then,  Landon  broke  the  silence  of  years 
and  wrote  one  letter  to  America  to  the  only  human 
being  who  knew  the  story  of  Ethel  Raynor ! 

"For  your  dead  daughter's  sake,  speak  now!" 
he  implored. 


318  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

CHAPTER   XIII. 

JACOPO  MASPERO'S  CONFESSION. 

Five  days  later,  all  Naples  was  familiar  with 
the  very  merriest  quartette  of  its  forastieri. 

The  stalwart  blue-eyed  Wainwright  was  a  nau- 
tical Apollo,  whose  curling  brown  hair,  laughing 
glances  and  springy  step  betokened  the  ideal 
sailor. 

Miles  Atwater's  fifty-five  years  sat  lightly  on 
him.  His  piercing  dark  eye,  stocky  build,  sternly 
good-humored  face  and  close-cropped  locks  "en 
militaire,"  with  the  wiry  cavalry  mustache,  the 
pride  of  the  Grays,  all  spoke  of  the  old  soldier. 

Mrs.  Mary  Atwater,  "discretement  vetue," — 
gazed  out  with  her  beautiful  brown  eyes  under 
an  unruffled  brow. 

A  notable  beauty  in  her  girlhood,  the  Colonel's 
wife  had  the  sober  matronly  air  of  the  veteran 
army  wife. 

Still  handsome  at  forty-five,  her  voice  was  sweet 
and  low  as  the  summer  wind. 

Many  a  poor  soldier  in  the  hospital  had  listened 
to  its  soft  accents  while  tossing  in  the  hospital 


JACOPO  MASPERO'S  CONFESSION.       319 

under  the  delirium  of  the  wounds  of  Indian  lance 
and  Sioux  bullet. 

Friend  and  associate  of  the  pretty  girl  wives 
who  came  to  reinforce  the  "Grays," — all  ignorant 
of  the  sad  realities  of  the  frontier, — she  was 
"Aunt  Mary"  to  the  whole  Regiment,  "with 
malice  towards  none,  with  charity  to  all!" 

It  was  only  when  Landon  had  led  them  a  merry 
dance  from  the  Museo  Borbonico  to  Paestum, — 
and  after  a  Grand  Ball  in  her  honor  on  the  glory- 
hallowed  "Kearsarge," — that  the  ex-Pasha  de- 
termined to  move  up  to  his  chosen  entrenchment 
at  Frascati. 

The  whole  story  of  the  year,  with  its  harvest 
of  sorrow,  was  known  now  to  the  three  friends! 

It  was  a  merry  party  of  adieu  at  the  Railway 
Station.  Jack  Haddon  had  been  sent  forth,  "a 
dove  out  of  the  ark,"  to  a  secret  conference  with 
Mr.  Charles  Hollingsworth  at  Rome,  and  also 
to  post  Edwin  Morgan  upon  the  location  of  his 
friend's  social  headquarters. 

This  conscience-stricken  Tommy  Atkins  was 
greatly  cheered  by  Pasha  Landon's  promise  to 
have  Colonel  Stanton,  H.  B.  M.,  courtly  military 
attache  at  Rome,  get  him  a  full  pardon  for  the 


320  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

desertion  which  had  sullied  his  name  after  eleven 
and  a  half  years  of  a  twelve-year  enlistment! 

"  'Twas  this  how,"  honestly  confessed  the 
sturdy  Briton.  "Rum  got  me  left  on  my  troop 
ship,  an'  a  pretty  Italian  lass,  at  Port  Said,  made 
me  forget  'the  Old  Lady  of  Windsor'  until  it 
was  too  late  to  compromise  with  Her  Majesty, 
so  I  cut  stick,  han'  become  a  bloomin'  Hegyp- 
tion  sodger !  That's  how." 

When  the  first  bell  rang,  Harry  Wainwright 
drew  Landon  aside. 

"Go  back  to  the  service,  my  boy.  A  dismounted 
cavalryman  is  like  an  eagle  waddling  on  the  earth, 
a  being  shorn  of  all  his  glory. 

"I've  watched  the  men  who  left  the  Navy, — 
just  flopping  around  helplessly,  like  fishes  out  of 
water ! 

"With  your  money,  you  can  illustrate  and  adorn 
the  Grays !  So,  go  up  and  make  Rome  howl !  I 
think,"  he  grinned,  "you'll  find  it  pretty  clear  of 
your  enemies  when  you  'shy  your  castor  into  the 
ring.'  " 

Mrs.  Mary  Atwater  led  the  young  soldier  aside. 

"Sidney!"  she  whispered,  laying  her  kindly 
white  hand  upon  his  arm.  "Come  back  to  us! 


JACOPO  MASPERO'S  CONFESSION.       321 

You  know  the  only  disturbing  element  soon  leaves 
us!  God  help  poor  Colonel  Prindle!  He  is  a 
good,  blunt  old  soldier!  He  has  borne  the  cross 
of  a  bitter-tongued  wife  for  years!  You  will  be 
righted!  Poor  'Black  Bill,'  the  men  are  going 
to  give  him  a  testimonial  to  show  that  they  hold 
him  guiltless.  Dora  was  worn  into  a  social  mad- 
ness by  envy  and  their  long-delayed  promotion." 

"Poor  old  Prindle;'  sighed  Landon.  "But 
nothing  can  restore  me  these  blackened  years — 
or  undo  the  work  of  that  cruel  woman's  hand." 

But,  cheery  Miles  Atwater  crushed  Landon's 
sword  hand  in  his  mighty  grasp. 

"You  are  under  orders  to  report  within  six 
months  at  the  headquarters  of  the  Grays, — we 
regard  you  as  the  'Knight  of  the  Golden  Armor,' 
now! 

"We  cavalrymen  do  not  know  much,  but  we 
know  a  good  thing  when  we  see  it,  and  we  pro- 
pose to  keep  it! 

"Drop  the  Pasha,  and  come  home  and  have  a 
race  with  the  Cheyenne  dog  soldiers,  and  the 
Sioux  braves!  They  all  know  you, — 'Young 
Chief  who  rides  ahead  of  his  Troop.' ' 

It  was  only  a  half  promise  which  Sidney  Lan- 
21 


322  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

don  gave  as  the  half  crazy  Italian  conductor  blew 
his  little  bird  pipe,  and  waved  him  in  to  the  car 
with  much  wild  gesticulation. 

Landon  passed  a  telegram  over  to  Jack  Had- 
don  at  Terracoria. 

"You  seem  to  have  made  a  good  choice/'  he 
remarked.  It  was  from  Charley  Hollingsworth, 
and  read: 

"Have  secured  apartments,  selected  by  your 
valet,  in  Villa  Piccolomini, — best  in  Frascati. 
Morgan  and  I  will  meet  you  there,  noon  to-mor- 
row." 

Sidney  Landon's  heart  was  gay,  as  he  left  the 
Naples  railway  carriage  next  morning,  at  Ciani- 
pino,  and  caught  the  local  to  Frascati. 

As  the  little  train  climbed  the  hill,  towards  old 
Tusculum,  Sidney  Landon  gazed  back  at  Rome, 
where  his  banded  enemies  were  now  agitated  over 
the  rumored  coming  of  "the  worm  that  had 
turned." 

The  soldier's  face  hardened  as  he  thought  of 
Rawdon  Clark's  precipitate  departure  for  Paris, 
for  this  news  of  moment  was  brought  back  by  the 
ferret-eyed  Haddon! 

He  was  also  furnished  with  Forrest  Grimes' 


JACOPO  MASPERO'S  CONFESSION.       323 

Paris  address,  and  the  local  habitat  of  the  pros- 
perous Frank  Hatton,  who  was  stationed  for  the 
summer  at  the  Grand  Hotel  Hungaria,  Buda 
Pesth,  doing  the  Danube. 

"I'll  write  to  Forrest  Grimes  to  keep  a  keen 
eye  on  Mr.  Rawdon  Clark.  If  I  mistake  not,  he 
is  the  party  who  has  the  longest  account  to  settle. 

"And,  by  Jove,  I'll  send  Haddon  up  to  Florence 
to  mail  all  my  letters  there,  so  that  the  Roman 
light-fingered  gentry  can  not  touch  them.  I'll 
send  them  all  through  the  French  Consul,  'recom- 
mande'  to  Freycinet  Freres.  That  will  do  the 
business." 

He  had  pondered  for  hours  upon  Agnes  Haw- 
thorn's strange  remarks  on  the  Aguila  d'  Oro! 

In  sweeping  through  the  long  tunnel  he  could 
again  see  the  vaulted  rocky  dome  of  the  Blue 
Grotto,  with  its  ghastly  infiltrated  bluish  light, 
its  silvery  breaking  gleams  under  the  plashing 
oar. 

"Strange,  strange,"  he  mused,  "that  of  the 
whole  wide  world — this  fairy  basin,  with  its 
forty-foot  ceiling,  its  oval  of  two  hundred  by  one 
hundred  feet  should  have  locked  me  in  a  life  and 


324  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

death  grapple  with  fate  for  the  one  fair  woman 
of  all  the  world!" 

He  could  see  that  dear  pale  face  resting  on  his 
shoulder  —  the  silver  crystal  flood  breaking 
around  her  beloved  form,  and  the  mirrored  bot- 
tom, eight  fathoms  deep,  where  the  fairy  coral 
hides  glittering  starfish  and  the  delicate  sea 
anemone. 

"It  was  as  if  Lurline  and  the  naiads  had  given 
her  back  to  me,  in  their  fantastic  sport  with  the 
mortals  who  intrude  upon  the  water  maiden's  one 
Imperial  bower." 

He  was  dreaming  of  stern  Tiberius,  crowned 
with  blood-red  gold,  watching  his  star-eyed  fa- 
vorites sporting  in  those  silvery  blue  depths  when 
the  train  halted  under  Monte  Porzio. 

In  half  an  hour, — he  was  gazing  out  of  the 
windows  of  his  new  abode  upon  the  huge  dome 
of  St.  Peter's,  lifted  high  in  air  over  the  Leonine 
city. 

Jack  Haddon  bestirred  himself  to  arrange  a 
breakfast  of  due  delicacy  for  the  "envoys  from 
Rome,"  while  Landon,  after  a  shaking  down  of 
his  effects,  drove  back  to  the  station  for  his 
guests ! 


JACOPO  MASPERO'S  CONFESSION.      325 

The  dilettante  tourists  stood  aghast  as  Hol- 
lingsworth  and  Morgan  fell  upon  the  returned 
Abyssinian  warrior,  with  shouts  of  joy. 

Merrily  the  wheels  rattled  along,  as  the  three 
friends  were  driven  around  the  foliage-shaded 
winding  road  to  the  Villa  Piccolomini. 

Charley  Hollingsworth's  brow  was  big  with 
mystery,  but  he  rattled  out  a  piece  of  information 
which  brought  peals  of  laughter  from  the  ex- 
Pasha. 

"I  don't  know  what  you've  done  to  Robert 
Brandon,  but  that  braying  jackass  seems  be- 
witched. He  is  rushing  around  Rome,  carrying 
in  commission  the  very  latest  rumors  in  your 
case! 

"I  found  him  at  the  American  Club  telling  a 
circle  of  a  score  of  the  'old  stand-bys'  that  your 
leaving  the  Consular  service  was  purely  volun- 
tary, after  all, — that  you  had  been  offered  a  high 
appointment  in  the  Regular  Army  by  the  Presi- 
dent,— and,  that  you  only  declined  it  to  accept 
a  secret  Military  Mission  to  Egypt  of  the  gravest 
character. 

"And,"  continued  Hollingsworth,  "the  strang- 
est thing  of  all  is,  that  he  has  actually  got  from 


326  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Stilwell  Meacham  official  copies  of  your  appli- 
cation for  leave  of  absence, — your  resignation, — 
and  the  State  Department's  most  complimentary 
dispatch  to  you,  begging  you  to  recall  your  tele- 
graphed resignation,  and  offering  you  six  months' 
leave  of  absence." 

Landon  laughed  heartily  as  he  escorted  his 
guests  to  the  quaint  old  reception  hall  of  his 
mediaeval  apartment.  He  recalled  the  Egyptian 
boy's  prescription  for  his  donkey:  "Plenty  of 
stick!" 

"Any  further  'stir  in  Rome?'  "  gaily  demanded 
Landon,  as  they  sat  down  to  Haddon's  splendidly 
thrown  together  breakfast! 

"Oh!  yes!"  gravely  replied  Charley  Hollings- 
worth,  who  had  been  chattering  of  Landon's 
faithful  ally,  Elaine,  and  the  two  "cherubs,"  now 
the  terror  of  young  Rome,  with  their  ingrained 
American  devilment. 

"All  this  hubbub  of  Brandon's  was  a  day  after 
the  fair,  for  Minister  Van  Buren  Hartford  gave 
a  formal  dinner  at  the  Legation,  at  which  the 
Melvilles  and  all  the  leading  Americans  were 
present,  as  well  as  the  English,  French  and  Ger- 
man Ambassadors. 


JACOPO  MASPERO'S   CONFESSION.      327 

"I  saw  both  Montaverde  and  Pallavinci  on 
hand,  too,  spangled  with  decorations. 

"Hartford  publicly  drank  your  health  and 
spoke  of  your  remarkable  bravery  at  Gura, — and 
of  your  Pashaship,  as  well  as  the  Grand  Cross  of 
the  Medjidjie! 

"He  took  occasion  to  nail  both  lies,  the  one  that 
you  had  gone  out  of  the  service  under  any  pres- 
sure, and,  the  other  base  rumor  that  he  had  asked, 
you  to  resign." 

Landon's  face  hardened  to  stone!  He  might 
have  been  an  Indian  on  the  war  path  waiting  to 
bound  out,  tomahawk  in  hand! 

Hollingsworth  quietly  added,  "Hartford  is  a 
great  political  trimmer!  He  drew  me  aside  and 
told  me  that  he  had  been  most  damnably  misin- 
formed about  you. 

"I'll  give  him  a  chance  to  say  that,  in  person, 
soon,"  grimly  rejoined  the  cavalryman. 

The  trio  passed  a  jolly  couple  of  hours,  until 
Edwin  Morgan  drew  Landon  aside  and  slipped 
a  letter  into  his  hand. 

"I  was  told  to  give  you  this,  in  private"  he 
murmured,  "and  I've  loads  to  tell  you  of  Mas- 
pero.  I  think  that  he  is  getting  ready  for  flight !" 


328  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"We  must  stop  that.  I  need  that  scoundrel  in 
the  'round-up,'  "  quickly  said  Landon. 

Charley  Hollingsworth,  sauntering  up,  an- 
nounced his  intention  of  driving  over  alone  to 
dine  with  the  Princess  Branciforte. 

"She's  one  of  my  earliest  Roman  flames,"  the 
gay  fellow  said,  "and  she  always  claims  me,  when 
she  can,  for  a  dinner  of  memory, — a  sort  of 
'funeral  baked  meats,' — of  our  Platonic  fascin- 
ation. You  men  have  loads  to  say  to  each  other." 

Morgan  wandered  out  into  the  garden  to  locate 
the  "points  de  mire" — of  the  superb  panorama, 
with  Landon's  signal  glasses, — while  the  agitated 
soldier  eagerly  broke  the  seal  of  Gertrude  Mel- 
ville's letter.  His  hands  trembled  as  he  read  the 
fateful  lines: 

"Agnes  is  here  with  me,  and  insists  that  I  shall 
convoy  her  on  to  London,  where  she  has  taken 
a  house  for  the  season  with  Mrs.  De  Peyster 
Van  Cortlandt. 

"All  has  been  one  series  of  strange  surprises 
since  we  returned.  Mrs.  Brandon  has  locked  her- 
self from  the  world  since  her  husband's  disgrace. 
Stories  of  the  fracas  have  been  wafted  up  from 


JACOPO  MASPERO'S  CONFESSION.       329 

Naples  by  the  hotel  porters  and  returning  tour- 
ists. 

'The  facts  are  generally  known  now, — though 
the  causes  are  as  yet  faintly  hidden. 

"But  I  have  learned  from  Agnes  that  it  was 
Mrs.  Brandon  who  showed  her  the  letters  from 
America,  blackening  your  name.  They  are  now 
in  Mrs.  Brandon's  possession.  Agnes  has  dis- 
charged her  companion,  Mrs.  Agatha  Waring, 
and  I  have  prevailed  upon  Arthur  to  escort  us 
to  London  together.  Elaine  Hollingsworth  will 
take  Elsie,  and  I  shall  put  Mr.  Morgan  in  charge 
of  our  home! 

"There  are  two  terrible  things  to  tell,  and  I 
hesitate  for  very  shame. 

"Rawdon  Clark  forced  himself  upon  Agnes  at 
the  Hotel  Costanzi,  and,  after  receiving  a  definite 
dismissal, — then  broke  out  into  a  foul  tirade  of 
abuse. 

"He  assailed  her,  with  all  the  bitterness  of  a 
madman:  'You  met  this  sleek  adventurer,  Lan- 
don,  at  the  tomb  of  Cecilia  Metella, — your  half- 
blind  old  duenna  Montgomery  was  bribed  to  play 
propriety — and,  when  surprised  in  your  love- 


330  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

making, — he  shot  the  poor,  unarmed  peasant  who 
stumbled  upon  you! 

"  'Only  by  threats  of  the  police  did  the  un- 
masked rascal  clear  out,  at  last!' 

"And,  shame  upon  shame, — that  very  night, — 
the  night  he  left  for  Paris,  a  messenger  placed  in 
my  husband's  own  hands  an  anonymous  letter : 

"  'Your  wife  could  not  let  her  secret  lover, 
Landon,  go  away  without  meeting  him  once 
more  at  the  Fontana  di  Trevi !  You  have  been  a 
hoodwinked  fool!  Ask  her  if  she  went  to  the 
Princess*  ball!  And, — ask  her  who  was  with 
her, — who  covered  her  daring  intrigue !  Perhaps 
your  own  waiting  women  can  tell  you!  If  you 
want  the  name  of  the  coachman, — the  number  of 
the  carriage, — you  shall  have  it!  Fool!  Drop 
the  scales  from  your  eyes !  Leave  your  painting 
garret  and  watch  over  your  home!  And, — this 
fellow,  Landon,  laughs  over  these  intrigues!  He 
left  a  wide  swath  in  Rome!  A  military  Don 
Juan!' 

"Now,  Arthur  Melville  is  the  soul  of  honor, — 
the  mirror  of  manliness, — though  often  led  into 
an  easy,  self-forgetfulness  by  his  artistic  nature, 

"I  have  seen  the  nobility  of  my  husband's  na- 


JACOPO  MASPERO'S  CONFESSION.       331 

ture  in  his  one  remark:  "Gertrude, — a  grievous 
wrong  has  been  done  to  Landon!' 

"As  to  the  letter,  he  placed  it  in  my  hand  with- 
out a  word !  I  think  it  better  you  should  not  see 
Agnes  until  you  have  wrenched  the  truth  from 
all  these  hidden  enemies. 

"The  letter  in  Mrs.  Brandon's  hands  she  will 
riot  dare  to  destroy. 

"She  will  keep  it  to  hold  it  over  the  one  who 
hired  her  to  betray  her  own  relative!  I  think 
that  you  can  guess  the  name ! 

"But,  wait  at  Frascati  till  we  return!  You 
and  I,  and  Morgan  and  the  Hollingsworths,  will 
trap  these  villains!  Send  any  answer  you  wish, 
by  Morgan !" 

"I'll  have  that  letter,  if  I  give  up  my  last  drop 
of  heart's  blood,"  sternly  said  Landon,  as  he  hid 
Gertrude  Melville's  communication  in  his  bosom. 

And,  then,  dismissing  all  his  own  cares, — he 
joined  Morgan  and  learned  the  whole  story  of 
Jacopo  Maspero's  movements. 

"I've  had  him  most  carefully  watched,"  con- 
cluded Edwin  Morgan,  when  he  had  unveiled  all 
the  doings  of  the  year! 

"He  has  been  a  secret  lover  of  Emilia,  Mrs. 


332  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Melville's  confidential  attendant !  You  know  what 
a  beautiful  and  resolute  looking  devil  she  is ! 

"Of  course,  he  spied  upon  his  master  through 
her!  But,  of  late,  he  has  been  lavishing  money 
upon  'la  Graziana,' — a  handsome  actress  of  the 
Teatro  Apollo! — and,  now,  Emilia  is  glooming 
alone  around  the  Palazzo  Vecchio. 

"The  other  girl,  Lucia,  often  joins  the  Grazi- 
ana and  Maspero  in  their  little  suppers. 

"If  you  wish  to  bring  this  scoundrel  Maspero 
up  with  a  round  turn,  now  is  the  time, — for,  the 
Graziana  goes  to  Paris,  and,  the  office  boy,  Paolo, 
whom  I  have  won  over  by  using  money  as  you 
directed,  tells  me  that  Maspero's  luggage  is  all 
packed ! 

"He  may  be  mad  enough  to  follow  her  to  Paris 
— and, — Clark  is  there!  Paolo  tells  me  that 
Clark  and  Maspero  met  often  at  the  Hotel 
Quirinale." 

Sidney  Landon  bounded  to  his  feet!  He 
clenched  his  fists  in  a  sudden  rage ! 

"When  do  the  Melvilles  leave  for  London?" 
he  demanded. 

"To-morrow  night!"  said  the  astonished  Mor- 
gan! 


JACOPO  MASPERO'S  CONFESSION.       333 

"Then,  Edwin,"  slowly  said  the  soldier,  "I  will 
come  down  to  Rome  to-morrow  evening.  I  will 
go  to  the  Hotel  Cavour, — near  the  railway  sta- 
tion on  the  Via  del  Viminale. 

"Meet  me  there  at  midnight.  The  Melvilles  will 
be  gone  then,  and  you  can  bring  any  letter  that 
Mrs.  Melville  may  give  you. 

"Say  nothing  of  my  movements  to  any  one. 

"I  will  telegraph  now  to  Colonel  and  Mrs. 
Atwater  to  come  up  to  Rome,  instantly. 

"Now,  I  will  go  and  write  my  letter  to  Mrs. 
Melville.  When  do  you  go  down  with  Hollings- 
worth?" 

"That  depends  upon  the  Princess  Branciforte" 
laughed  Morgan.  "Eleven  o'clock  was  the  time 
agreed  upon." 

"Good,"  said  Sidney  Landon.  "One  last  re- 
quest: If  Maspero  shows  any  signs  of  flitting 
to-morrow,  beg  Arthur  Melville  to  have  him  ar- 
rested as  an  embezzler  at  once!  Watch  his 
rooms!  If  the  baggage  goes  out, — tell  Melville 
that  I  have  the  proofs  of  the  rascal's  deeds! 
And,  then,  telegraph  to  me, — I  will  take  the  next 
train !" 

And  the  two  friends  beguiled  the  hours  until 


334  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

dinner  in  wandering  over  the  mundane  paradise 
of  Prince  Torlonia. 

They  sat  in  the  cool  evening  hours,  under  the 
watchful  stars,  awaiting  the  return  of  the  gay 
troubadour,  Hollingsworth,  when  a  messenger 
dashed  up  on  horseback,  with  a  telegram  for  "II 
Signore  Sidney  Landon,  Villa  Piccolomini." 

The  alert  soldier  tore  open  the  blue  folded  strip 
and  then  yelled  for  Haddon,  as  he  grasped  his 
top  coat  and  hat! 

"Read  that,  Morgan,"  he  huskily  cried! 

"Haddon!  Catch  the  nearest  carriage!  We 
take  the  next  train!  You  will  wait  here!  See 
Mr.  Hollingsworth  off!  Tell  him  he'll  find  me 
at  the  American  Consulate,  and  to  get  there  at 
once!  Tell  him  that  something  grave  has  hap- 
pened!" 

Edwin  Morgan  was  at  Landon's  side  as  the 
soldier  sharply  cried  to  his  valet : 

"Lock  up  all  here!  Bring  my  luggage  and 
come  down  on  the  first  morning  train  to  the 
Consulate!" 

In  five  minutes,  the  two  men  were  dashing 
along  to  the  station,  repeating  to  each  other  the 
fateful  words  of  Arthur  Melville : 


JACOPO  MASPERO'S  CONFESSION.       335 

"Maspero  fatally  stabbed,  by  a  woman,  in  the 
office,  this  evening.  Come  at  once.  He  is  lying 
here.  He  asks  for  you.  Hasten.  He  will  only 
last  a  few  hours!" 

"It  is  the  beginning  of  the  end,"  hoarsely  cried 
Landon,  as  they  leaped  aboard  the  train. 

Neither  of  the  friends  spoke  while  the  little 
train  rattled  off  its  twelve  miles. 

But,  once  at  the  station  in  Rome,  they  leaped 
into  a  carriage,  and  that  Roman  Jehu  well  earned 
the  golden  twenty  lire  which  dazzled  his  eyes. 

As  the  two  friends  sprang  out  at  the  Palazzo 
Vecchio,  they  brushed  aside  a  half  dozen  gens- 
d'armes  who  were  guarding  the  lower  entrance. 

Up  the  stairway  they  hastened,  to  see  the  gleam 
of  lights  in  the  main  Consular  office,  and,  two 
armed  men  on  guard  at  the  door! 

At  a  sign  from  Consul  General  Melville, — the 
gensd'armes  dropped  their  crossed  swords. 

There  were  no  words  of  welcome  spoken  as 
Sidney  Landon  hastened  to  the  corner,  where,  ex- 
tended upon  a  mattress,  the  wounded  Italian  lay 
upon  the  floor. 

Doctor  Cesare  Corvini  was  on  his  knees  beside 
the  sufferer,  watching  there,  with  a  glass  of  cor- 
dial in  his  hand. 


336  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

And,  at  the  other  side  of  the  dying  man, — a 
priest  knelt  in  prayer,  while  the  crucifix  and 
candles  upon  Maspero's  desk  told  of  the  last 
solemn  rites  of  the  church. 

As  Landon  bent  over  his  secret  enemy, — the 
Italian  turned  his  dark,  glittering  eyes  upon  him 
with  a  hopelessly  imploring  gaze. 

"It  is  too  late,"  he  murmured.  "You  will  not 
believe  me!  I  intended  to  have  told  you  all! 
Once  at  Paris  with  la  Graziana, — I  would  have 
been  safe. 

"For  this  pitiful  brute,  Clark,  denied  me 
money,  after  I  have  slaved  for  him  a  year ! 

"I  offered  to  tell  him  who  was  with  la  Sig- 
norina  Melville,  on  that  night  at  the  Fontana  di 
Trevi!" 

Sidney  Landon  started  back  as  the  wounded 
man  gasped: 

"/  was  the  beggar  whom  you  drove  azvay." 

"And  why  did  you  hate  me?"  quietly  asked 
Landon,  holding  up  a  warning  finger  to  Melville, 
as  Doctor  Corvini  felt  the  weakening  pulse. 

"I  knew  that  you  had  detected  my  robberies  of 
the  government  funds.  The  boy  Paolo  told  me 


AT  THE  OTHER  SIDE  OF  THE  DYING  MAN,  A  PRIEST 
KNELT  IN  PRAYER.— 


JACOPO  MASPERO'S  CONFESSION.       337 

of  you  and  Morgan  secretly  working  over  the 
books ! 

"And  then,  I  thought  if  I  could  help  Clark  to 
blacken  your  name, — the  one  with  the  golden 
hair,  up  there  at  the  Costanzio, — would  throw 
you  over,  and, — you  would  leave  Rome! 

"Clark  has  worked  day  and  night  to  crush  you ! 
He  paid  for  your  blackballing  at  the  club.  Mont- 
aver  de  knows  all! 

"Revenge  me  upon  him,  the  miserly  scoundrel, 
and — upon  Brandon  and  his  wife, — they  were  all 
in  it!  Clark  promised  to  make  them  rich! 
Basta!  Tutto  e  finito! 

"In  my  desk,"  he  gasped,  "you  will  find  a  copy 
of  your  letter  to  the  Signora  Hawthorn, — I  gave 
Clark  one! 

"I  stole  all  your  letters  that  I  could!  I  paid 
for  this  at  the  Postoffice  with  Clark's  money." 

Landon's  face  betrayed  his  horror  and  disgust. 

"Don't  curse  me!  I  am  dying!"  faltered  Mas- 
pero.  "/  was  afraid  of  you!  I  was  led  on  at 
first  by  gambling  to  take  a  little,  and, — the 
Padrone  was  so  easy, — he  never  even  looked  at 
a  paper!  The  one  theft  pushed  the  other  on! 

And,  too  late,  when  I  fell  in  Clark's  hands,  I  saw 
22 


338  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

that  he  could  always  ruin  me, — even  from  a  dis- 
tance— and,—/  could  not  strike  back!  But  one 
good  deed  I  will  leave  behind!  She  loves  yon! 
The  golden  hair!  There  is  her  letter  to  you, 
when  you  wrote  from  Nice  for  her  answer !  She 
says: 

"  'Come,  come  to  me,  at  once!  I  am  waiting 
for  you, — with  a  loving  heart!' 

"I  would  not  give  the  letter  to  Clark,  but,  he 
had  a  copy,  and — he  paid  well  for  it!" 

"How  did  you  get  that  letter?"  solemnly  de- 
manded Landon. 

"Emilia  stole  it,  the  damned  witch,  when  she 
was  sent  to  post  it  by  the  Signorina  Melville,  for 
the  golden  hair  was  in  the  house! 

"I  had  to  make  love  to  Emilia  to  get  her  secrets 
for  that  scoundrel  Clark — and, — it  is  her  knife 
that  has  finished  me!" 

Melville  had  already  opened  Maspero's  desk — 
and  he  silently  handed  a  pocketbook  to  Landon. 

"All  the  other  papers  are  gone!"  the  dying  man 
whispered.  "I  was  going  to  run  away  as  soon  as 
the  Consul  left,  for  I  could  not  live  without  the 
Graziana,  and  I  intended  to  catch  Clark  in  Paris 
and  frighten  him! 


JACOPO  MASPERO'S  CONFESSION.       339 

"Dio  mio!  For  ten  minutes,  alone  in  a  room 
with  him,  with  a  knife!  And,  now " 

His  head  fell  back  in  a  fit  of  violent  coughing ! 
They  raised  him  up! 

"There  is  fifteen  hundred  lire,  sewed  in  my 
waistcoat,"  he  muttered.  "Give  them  to  Lucia! 
She  was  my  poor  dupe.  Poor  girl!  She  loved 
me,  and  /  deceived  her!  She  was  true  to  her 
mistress,  until  love  made  her — like  me — a  fool! 
Emilia, — may  she  burn  in  hell " 

His  head  fell  back  helplessly,  and,  with  one 
long  shuddering  groan,  the  spirit  passed! 

When  all  the  windows  were  opened,  the  crowd 
below  knew  that  the  Angel  of  Death  had  entered 
the  great  hall  above  them ! 

In  half  an  hour,  only  the  priest,  on  his  knees, 
was  guarding  the  body,  lying  there,  with  its 
arms  folded  over  the  breast,  now  stiffening  in 
death. 

Two  gendarmes  nodded,  in  their  chairs,  at  the 
door,  and  a  sentinel  faced  the  long  hall  below ! 

A  dozen  squares  away,  Emilia  Cataldo  was 
wringing  her  hands  and  tearing  her  long,  dis- 
hevelled hair  in  agony,  for  the  jailer  had  put  a 
death-watch  in  her  cell. 


340  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"Your  lover  is  dead,"  roughly  said  the  brute, 
"and,  you — go  to  the  piombi  for  life." 

It  was  long  after  midnight  when  Sidney  Lan- 
don  grasped  the  hands  of  Doctor  Corvini  and 
Arthur  Melville! 

"Pledge  me"  he  said,  "upon  your  honor  that 
you  will  never  repeat  this  poor  wretch's  dis- 
closures. Morgan  has  heard  nothing!  Melville, 
let  nothing  keep  you  from  hastening  your  wife 
and  Miss  Hawthorn  over  to  London !  Let  Mor- 
gan guard  your  home !  /  will  stay  in  Rome  until 
your  return! 

"Vice  Consul  General  Meacham  will  attend 
to  the  authorities.  I  will  see  this  poor  devil 
buried.  Colonel  Atwater  will  be  here  to-morrow, 
and  we  will  see  the  Minister !  The  silence  of  the 
grave  is  all  I  ask!  My  honor,  alone,  is  con- 
cerned!" 

And  when  Charley  Hollingsworth  came  dash- 
ing in,  Morgan  and  the  new  comer  could  only 
escort  Sidney  Landon  to  the  Hotel  de  Russie. 

"Back  to  Rome,  by  a  strange  path,"  murmured 
Landon,  when,  with  a  bounding  heart,  he  read  the 
sweet  avowal  of  Agnes  Hawthorn,  now  a  year 
old, — "Shall  we  ever  meet  at  the  fountain?" 


THE  DAY  OF  RECKONING.  341 

CHAPTER   XIV. 

THE   DAY   OF    RECKONING. 

Before  noon,  the  next  day,  all  Rome  was  ring- 
ing with  the  echoes  of  the  sinister  tragedy  at  the 
American  Consulate  General. 

Gertrude  Melville  and  her  Rose  in  Bloom  Elsie, 
with  Miss  Agnes  Hawthorn,  under  the  escort 
of  Mr.  Stillwell  Meacham, — took  the  noon  train 
for  Florence  in  order  to  escape  the  horror  of  the 
proximity  of  the  dead  Deputy  Vice  Consul 
General. 

There  were  the  wildest  rumors  in  the  banking 
and  trading  fraternity,  and  a  dozen  familiar  faces 
were  suddenly  missing  from  money  mart  and  the 
"business  parlors." 

A  hurried  note  of  "good-bye"  from  Gertrude 
Melville  found  Sidney  Landon  at  the  Hotel  de 
Russie,  in  close  conference  with  Colonel  Atwater, 
Edwin  Morgan  and  Charley  Hollingsworth. 

The  ex-Pasha  trembled  and  turned  pale  when 
he  opened  the  note  sent  by  the  Consul  General's 
wife. 

It  read: 


342  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"Dear  Sidney, — When  this  horror  is  over,  come 
over  to  Paris  and  London  and  see  me!  You 
must! 

"There  is  a  duty  laid  upon  me  which  I  will 
not  shirk!  All  must  be  made  clear!  Send  me 
a  note  by  Arthur,  who  follows  us  to-night !" 

Out  of  that  dainty  pacquet  fell  a  tiny  golden 
ring,  with  the  tell-tale  inscription,  "Agnes,"  and 
there  was  a  folden  silken  paper,  in  which  was 
enwrapped  the  lace  handkerchief  of  the  Queen 
of  the  Night  at  the  Fontana  de  Trevi.  And  the 
gallant  soldier's  eyes  were  dim  as  he  kissed  the 
little  golden  ring. 

It  had  been  a  stern  and  brief  Council  of  War 
up  there  at  the  Hotel  de  Russie. 

Morgan  had  brought  along  the  frightened 
young  wretch,  Paolo,  the  office  boy,  who  now 
confessed  all  of  Maspero's  ill  deeds.  Consular 
Clerk  Morgan  had  the  whole  official  proofs  of 
Maspero's  moneyed  rascalities,  and,  too  late, 
Arthur  Melville  cursed  himself  for  taking  over 
"a  confidential  man"  from  his  easy-going  prede- 
cessor. 

Maspero's  crimes  varied  from  extorting  double 
fees, — levying  tribute  on  sales  to  tourists, — to 
false  vouchers  for  increased  office  expenses, — and 


THE  DAY  OF  RECKONING.  343 

thefts  of  hundreds  of  dollars  monthly  from  the 
postal  accounts  of  the  huge  office  mail. 

The  postage  stamps,  regularly  purchased,  were 
duly  returned  and  cashed  through  Paolo,  less  a 
ten  per  cent  "rake  off"  to  the  cash  clerk  at  the 
General  Italian  post  office. 

A  number  of  special  deposits  of  funds  in  the 
Consulate  General  had  been  vainly  demanded  of 
the  bankers  by  the  alert  Morgan,  who  learned 
that  these  had  been  artfully  withdrawn  by  the 
dead  swindler.  Maspero's  perfect  knowledge  of 
all  local  formalities  had  enabled  his  frauds  to  be 
adroitly  covered  up. 

"We  must  see  the  United  States  Minister,  at 
once,"  exclaimed  Sidney  Landon.  "Melville,  you 
and  I,  and  Colonel  Atwater  (as  my  witness),  will 
go  to  him  at  once. 

"Morgan  must  bring  the  lad,  who  seems  to 
have  been  terrorized  by  Maspero,  and,  under 
threats  of  losing  his  daily  bread,  been  used  as 
the  cat's  paw  in  all  the  dirty  villainy!" 

"And  I," — exclaimed  Charley  Hollingsworth, 
"will  go  to  the  jail  and  see  the  poor  devil  Emilia 
Cataldo.  I  have  known  her  for  years!  She  will 
tell  me  the  whole  story  of  Maspero's  villainies. 


344  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Then,  I  have  to  attend  an  extraordinary  meeting 
of  the  Cercle  de  Rome !  There  is  a  whirlpool  of 
excitement  in  the  Italian  jeunesse  doree,  for 
Pallavinci  desperately  wounded  Montaverde  in 
a  duel  last  night! 

"It  seems  that  Montaverde  made  a  personal 
canvass  of  the  members  of  the  Cercle  de  Rome, 
and  then — upon  Clark  and  Brandon's  authority, 
spread  the  vile  reports  which  led  to  the  insult 
to  Captain  Landon!" 

It  was  a  decidedly  mauvais  quart  d'heure  for 
the  Honorable  Van  Buren  Hartford,  when  the 
Consul  General  ushered  in  the  visiting  party. 

The  awkwardness  of  the  situation  was  accent- 
uated by  Lieutenant  Colonel  Landon,  ex-Pasha, 
declining  to  take  the  Minister's  offered  hand,  or 
to  seat  himself  in  the  Legation. 

"/  am  only  following  Your  Excellency's  lead" 
he  grimly  remarked.  "I  have  brought  Colonel 
Miles  Atwater  here,  as  my  witness,  to  have  you 
publicly  state  that  you  know  nothing  derogatory 
to  my  official  character.  As  to  your  personal 
opinion,  sir, — it  is  valueless!" 

Colonel    Atwater    engaged    the    embarrassed 


THE  DAY  OF  RECKONING.  345 

Minister  in  conversation,  until  Landon  again 
took  up  the  pas  de  charge. 

"I  am  leaving  Rome,  sir.  I  leave  to  you — Mr. 
Edwin  Morgan,  with  this  wretched  boy  in  charge. 

"Paolo's  evidence,  and  Mr.  Morgan's  papers, 
will  prove  to  you  that  this  Consulate  General  has 
been  robbed  for  years !  I  began  to  ferret  out  the 
villain's  scoundrelism,  but  was  called  away  before 
I  had  the  final  proofs! 

"Mr.  Morgan  was  ready  to  denounce  and  arrest 
him,  in  case  of  attempted  flight,  but,  the  Italian 
woman's  knife  has  cut  the  Gordian  knot. 

"The  local  helplessness  of  this  man's  superiors 
in  face  of  his  craft,  local  affiliations  and  the  help 
of  all  the  meaner  subordinates,  as  well  as  pecu- 
lating petty  bankers  and  thieving  tradesmen 
only  proves  our  need  of  a  trained  and  intelligent 
Consular  system. 

"I  did  not  wish  to  officially  report  this  or  in- 
volve Mr.  Melville's  administration  until  I  had 
absolute  proofs !  Mr.  Morgan  has  just  completed 
them!" 

Consul  General  Melville,  with  a  grave  face, 
then  demanded  to  be  officially  relieved  until  such 
time  as  an  Inspector  of  Consulates  had  been  sent 


346  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

by  the  Department  to  go  over  the  whole  matter. 

The  Minister  was  glad  to  be  rid  of  his  disturb- 
ing visitors.  For  very  shame  he  dared  not  face 
Sidney  Landon,  whose  cold  scorn  cut  him  to  the 
quick!  He  dreaded  the  naming  of  his  secret 
adviser  and  political  backer,  the  Honorable  Raw- 
don  Clark,  of  the  Elkhorn  mine. 

But  Sidney  Landon,  standing  like  a  duelist  at 
the  mark,  only  bowed  formally,  as  the  Minister 
announced  the  promotion  of  Edwin  Morgan  to 
Deputy  Vice  Consul  General,  and  added  to  Mel- 
ville: "I  shall  put  my  third  attache,  Larue  Liv- 
ingston, in  the  Consulate  General,  to  watch  over 
your  personal  interests,  until  you  return  from 
London.  I  authorize  you  to  take  a  fortnight's 
leave!  I  will  personally  see  that  justice  is  done." 

The  frightened  Paolo  was  left  in  the  charge 
of  the  Legation  Interpreter,  subject  to  the  call  of 
the  Police,  and  the  three  gentlemen  returned  to 
the  Hotel  de  Russie  for  their  dejeuner. 

With  a  broken  voice,  Melville  faltered  his 
apologies  to  Sidney  Landon  for  the  outrages  of 
the  past. 

"Say  no  more,  dear  Melville,"  cried  Landon, 
with  a  glance  at  Atwater !  "There  are  only  two 


THE  DAY  OF  RECKONING.  347 

to  reckon  with,  the  active  villains.  You  were 
hoodwinked  and  wrought  upon !  But,  my  candid 
advice  to  you  is  either  to  personally  superintend 
your  office  in  future  or — else  to  throw  it  up!  You 
will  be  made  the  victim  of  some  great  black- 
guardism, unless  you  watch  the  Consulate!" 

Both  Atwater  and  Landon  were  relieved  when 
Arthur  Melville  departed,  having  made  a  rendez- 
vous at  the  Hotel  Metirice  in  Paris  and  the  Grand 
Hotel,  London,  with  the  two  army  friends! 

"We  have  a  little  bit  of  business  over  there," 
grimly  said  Landon,  "and  so,  we  will  bring  you 
the  news  from  Rome." 

The  comrades  were  enjoying  the  after-break- 
fast cigar  when  Morgan  broke  in  upon  them ! 

"Here  are  letters  marked  'Important,' "  said 
the  game  fellow,  "and  I  brought  them  up  my- 
self!" 

"The  Police  officials  have  seized  and  sealed 
all  Maspero's  effects,  and, — to-morrow,  I  begin 
a  careful  examination,  with  the  officers  of  justice, 
of  all  the  dead  rascal's  papers  and  belongings ! 
His  peculations  show  up  a  hundred  thousand  lire ! 
Where  did  it  all  go  to? 

"La    Graziana,"    suggested    Sidney    Landon. 
"Right,"  mused  the  new  Deputy  Vice  Consul 


348  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

General.  "She  cleared  out  at  daylight,  leaving 
her  maid  to  bring  on  her  luggage.  And, — the 
Police  tell  me  that  Emilia  Cataldo  is  hopelessly 
insane!  Poor  wretch!  She  only  raves  of  the 
Graziana,  and  screams  her  threats  to  murder  her 
rival!" 

When  the  faithful  Morgan  had  departed,  Lan- 
don  said: 

"Colonel  Miles,  now  get  ready  for  one  serious 
stroke  of  business !  All  depends  upon  your  stay- 
ing power  and  ability  to  frighten  the  one  who  has 
been  behind  all  this  mischief." 

While  the  good  Colonel  made  himself  ready — 
Landon  glanced  at  his  letters.  He  started  up  in 
surprise,  as  he  read  Forrest  Grimes'  brief  note, 
and  ran  his  eye  over  a  heavily  displayed  news- 
paper slip  sent  on  by  the  unwearying  Hatton  from 
Buda  Pesth !  Both  letter  and  slip  told  of  an  im- 
pending controversy  over  the  ownership  of  that 
inexhaustible  treasure  mine  known  as  the  "Elk- 
horn." 

The  allegation  of  a  criminally  changed  survey, 
in  the  interest  of  Rawdon  Clark  and  associates, 
—was  lucidly  set  forth,  with  the  final  dictum, 
that  a  verdict  against  them  in  the  U.  S.  Circuit 


THE  DAY  OF  RECKONING.  319 

Court  at  Denver,  would  leave  the  alleged  con- 
spirators liable  for  the  return  of  all  the  millions 
heretofore  taken  from  the  "Elkhorn." 

"It  is  easy  to  see,"  wrote  the  sardonic  Grimes, 
"why  Clark  wished  to  make  sure  of  the  orphaned 
millionairess!  Agnes  Hawthorn's  future  and 
social  position  would  be  a  safe  anchor  to  help 
him  ride  out  this  storm ! 

"I'm  told  by  a  Colorado  newspaper  man  here 
that  the  Surveyor  and  land  office  officials  have 
been  heavily  subsidized  by  Clark  and  his  gang  in 
the  past! 

"If  they  break  on  the  trial,  and  let  the  cat  out 
of  the  bag,  then,  Clark  is  not  only  a  bankrupt 
but  may  have  to  take  to  his  heels,  as  he  has  done 
all  the  heavy  swearing  himself.  He  is  now  in 
Paris  at  the  Hotel  Athenee,  waiting  for  the  ver- 
dict, and,  I'm  told,  that  he  has  taken  to  drink- 
ing heavily, — and  now  abuses  Miss  Hawthorn, 
openly. 

"He  claims  to  have  trapped  her  in  some  assig- 
nation! Q.  E.  D. — that  she  has  given  the  dirty 
brute  the  conge !  If  I  were  near  enough,  I  would 
wring  his  neck,  on  general  principles!" 

The  last  spark  of  mercy  faded  out  of  Sidney 


350  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Landon's  chivalric  heart,  as  he  leaped  into  the 
carriage  with  Colonel  Atwater! 

The  old  veteran  was  got  up  in  a  heavy  Prince 
Albert  outfit  of  sombre  magnificence,  and  his 
good  gray  head  sported  a  glossy  "tile." 

"If  she  will  not  see  us?"  said  the  doubting 
Atwater. 

"She  must!"  sternly  said  Landon,  as  they 
rolled  along  to  the  Great  Emporium  of  Assisted 
Art 

It  did  not  escape  Landon's  quick  eye  that  all 
the  curtains  were  dropped  and  the  "persiennes" 
closed, — as  their  equipage  rolled  into  the  court- 
yard of  Brandon's  pretentious  abode. 

Robert  Brandon  had  his  weather  eye  out  for 
squalls. 

A  half  an  hour  was  spent  in  "pourparlers" 
with  the  skillfully  instructed  servants  at  the  door ! 
The  innate  grace  of  Italian  lying  is  an  unattain- 
able perfection  to  your  raw  Anglo-Saxon! 

"II  Signore  Brandon — ah,  yes!  He- was  away 
at  Venice, — making  his  sketch  of  the  Grand 
Canal  for  il  Signore  Clark's  great  picture,  and 
would  not  return  for  a  month ! 


THE  DAY  OF  RECKONING.  351 

"La  Signora  ill, — very  ill, — absolutely  unable 
to  see  anyone!" 

"Very  good!"  finally  rasped  out  Landon.  "We 
will  then  stay  here,  in  the  carriage, — all  night! 
It  is  a  matter  of  life  and  death." 

Another  half  an  hour  was  spent  in  vainly 
fencing  with  the  artful  woman  spy  whom  Myra 
Brandon  had  set  on  to  delude  the  unsuspicious 
heiress.  Mrs.  Agatha  Waring  tried  in  vain  to 
shield  her  artful  "confederate." 

At  last,  Colonel  Atwater's  temper  gave  way! 

"Madame!"  said  he.  "I  dislike  to  use  harsh 
measures  with  a  woman!  Mrs.  Brandon  knows 
very  well  what  we  have  come  here  for,  and,  now, 
I  tell  you  candidly,  that  we  will  not  leave  the 
house  without  it.  A  frank  giving  up  of  what  we 
seek  will  prevent  Lieutenant  Colonel  Landon  and 
myself  laying  the  whole  matter,  with  our  proofs, 
before  the  United  States  Minister  here! 

"Both  Mrs.  Melville  and  Mrs.  Hollingsworth 
have  seen  the  documents,  which  we  know  to  be 
in  Mrs.  Brandon's  possession ! 

"Now,  Madame,  the  Melvilles  and  Miss  Haw- 
thorn are  en  route  to  Paris! 

"A  telegram  will  reach  them  at  Meurice's  to- 


352  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

morrow,  and, — if  that  telegram  is  sent,  the  further 
residence  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Brandon  in  Rome  will 
be  an  impossibility. 

"I  am  an  old  man, — I  will  see  Mrs.  Brandon 
alone.  She  need  not  be  humiliated  with  Lieu- 
tenant Colonel  Landon's  presence. 

"But,"  his  eyes  flashed,  "by  the  gods  of  War, 
I'll  give  her  just  five  minutes  to  see  me,  and,  to 
hand  over  those  papers!  She  has  the  last  chance 
to  save  herself,  and  her  husband!" 

He  drew  out  his  watch! 

"//  she  does  not  yield,  I  will  go  up  to  the 
American  Club  and  post  Brandon  publicly!  It's 
a  case  of  touch  and  go!" 

While  the  adroit  spy  was  absent,  the  two  men 
studied  the  artistic  misfits  upon  the  walls! 

Their  agony  was  mitigated  by  the  return  of  the 
frightened  woman,  who  had  been  Agnes  Haw- 
thorn's treacherous  guide. 

One  last  imploring  demand  that  the  Brandons 
should  be  held  scathless  was  granted,  and,  then, 
Sidney  Landon,  sternly  sad,  at  this  humiliation 
of  womanhood,  went  apart  with  Mrs.  Brandon's 
woman  adjutant  when  the  defeated  schemer 
loitered  into  the  room. 


THE  DAY  OF  RECKONING.  353 

For  five  minutes,  there  was  the  sound  of  sobs 
and  imploring  demands.  At  last,  Colonel  At- 
water  entered  the  waiting  room. 

"/  have  all  the  Dora  Prindle  letters,"  he  gravely 
said ;  "both  of  them, — the  unsigned  one,  and  the 
one  addressed  directly  to  Miss  Hawthorn!  I 
recognize  Mrs.  Prindle's  handwriting." 

Colonel  Landon  stood  at  attention. 

"I  also  want  the  letters  signed  by  Barker 
Bolton,  and  Burton  Wilmot!  Mrs.  Melville  has 
told  me  of  them!  They  were  used  to  disgrace 
me  with  the  Minister,  and  also  with  Miss  Haw- 
thorn. 

"I  also  want  a  signed  letter  stating  that  Raw- 
don  Clark  gave  Mrs.  Brandon  these  letters,  as 
a  relative  of  Miss  Hawthorn's,  to  read  to  her, 
so  as  to  terminate  our  social  acquaintance!" 

After  an  hour  of  hysterics  and  stormy  sorrow, 
the  foolishly  wicked  woman,  cornered  at  last, 
signed  the  paper,  and  tottered  out  of  the  room! 

In  a  grave  silence,  the  victors  filed  down  stairs ! 

"God  help  poor  old  'Black  Bill!'  This  last 
disgrace  will  half  kill  him!"  muttered  the  loyal 
old  Colonel.  "Prindle  has  been  a  good  soldier! 
And, — my  God!  what  a  cross  he  has  carried!" 

23 


354  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"He  shall  be  held  harmless!"  cried  Landon, 
into  whose  eyes  a  cruel  gleam  had  stolen.  "Give 
me  the  letters!" 

And,  then,  Landon's  wrath  broke  loose  as  he 
gazed  upon  the  artful  slanders  which  had  driven 
Agnes  Hawthorn  to  scorn  him ! 

"See  here!  Atwater,"  he  grimly  said.  "I 
want  you  to  leave  your  wife  with  the  Hollings- 
worths!  We  will  slip  away  from  there,  and 
catch  the  midnight  train  for  Paris!  Rawdon 
Clark  shall  not  escape  me,  this  time!  He  must 
not  be  warned  by  these  lickspittles!" 

Colonel  Atwater  nodded,  and  they  only  listened 
to  the  patter  of  the  horses'  feet  as  they  raced  back 
to  the  Hotel  de  Russie. 

In  the  garden,  Charley  Hollingsworth  awaited 
them! 

"I've  just  returned  from  the  Club  meeting! 
You  have  been  unanimously  elected,  Landon, — 
and  Montaverde  has  been  expelled  for  dishonor- 
able practices  against  you ! 

"You  and  Atwater  must  now  drive  around  and 
leave  a  card  upon  the  officers  and  members.  The 
whole  town  is  ringing  with  the  Maspero  tragedy ! 

"His  body  has  been  removed  by  the  Police 


THE  DAY  OF  RECKONING.  355 

authorities!  It's  all  in  vain!  The  Cataldo  is 
demented!  Poor  devil!  Italian  jealousy  is  a 
raging  flood!" 

In  ten  minutes,  Hollingsworth  understood  the 
wishes  of  the  avengers. 

"Let  me  handle  all,"  he  said.  "Mrs.  Hollings- 
worth  will  come  down  here  and  take  Mrs.  At- 
water  up  to  dinner!  I'll  post  Morgan!  He  will 
be  of  our  party!  Keep  your  rooms  here!  I'll 
send  my  man,  Giuseppe,  down  here  after  dark 
for  your  sacs  de  voyage ! 

"While  I  go  and  post  Morgan, — arrange  your 
little  affairs.  Mrs.  Hollingsworth  will  come 
down  daily  to  Mrs.  Atwater  in  your  absence! 

"You  must  keep  your  rooms,  Landon,  and  I'll 
put  you  on  the  midnight  train,  in  my  carriage! 
I'll  go  and  get  you  through  tickets  and  coupe  lits 
for  Paris !" 

In  an  hour,  all  was  ready,  and  the  three  friends 
drove  around  to  the  Cercle  de  Rome. 

Colonel  Atwater's  name  was  duly  put  up  as  a 
visitor,  and  Lieutenant  Colonel  Landon  gravely 
paid  his  initiation  fees  and  a  year's  dues. 

A  half  an  hour  was  spent  with  the  triumphant 
Marquis  di  Pallavinci. 


356  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"Poor  devil!"  he  sighed.  "Montaverde  will 
recover,  but  he  is  out  of  the  pale,  now !  I've  no 
doubt  that  Clark  paid  hard  for  his  dirty  work, 
for,  I  learned  to-day  from  the  proprietor,  that 
Clark — the  dead  Maspero, — and  this  poor  fool 
Montaverde,  used  to  have  frequent  nightly  con- 
claves at  the  Quirinale!" 

The  most  startled  woman  in  Rome  was  Mrs. 
Mary  Atwater  when,  after  an  evening  of  tri- 
umphal celebration,  her  husband  called  her  aside. 

"Landon  and  I  are  going  to  run  over  to  Paris 
for  four  days! 

"You  are  impounded  in  the  care  of  Mrs.  Hol- 
lingsworth,  and,  no  one  is  to  know  of  our 
absence!  Charley  Hollingsworth  will  be  your 
cicerone,  and,  so — leave  all  to  him!" 

Mary  Atwater's  eyes  filled  with  tears  as  she 
threw  her  arms  around  her  husband. 

"Dear  little  woman!"  he  fondly  said,  as  he 
gave  her  a  bear's  hug.  "Don't  fret!  This  trip 
gives  Landon  back  to  his  regiment !  I  shall  tele- 
graph to  Hatcher  to  have  the  President  appoint 
him,  at  once!" 

And,  so,  Mary  Atwater  smiled  through  her 
tears  as  Colonel  Atwater  and  Landon  stole  awav 


THE  DAY  OF  RECKONING.  357 

at  half  past  eleven  with  Hollingsworth  and 
Morgan. 

"I'll  send  you  all  the  news  to  Meurice's,"  said 
Morgan. 

"The  sensation  is  growing  hourly,  and  Min- 
ister Hartford  has  been  all  afternoon  at  the  Con- 
sulate General,  directing  the  inquisition  into 
Maspero's  misdeeds! 

"He  has  transferred  all  the  Legation  and  Con- 
sular deposits,  'and  will  have  every  governmental 
account  experted.  I  find  that  all  the  special  de- 
posits were  made  in  Consul  General  Melville's 
name,  and  these  sly  Italians  must  make  good 
everything  withdrawn  by  Maspero. 

"And,  so, — we  are  getting  on  famously.  I  am 
getting  from  Lucia  and  Paolo  the  whole  details 
of  Clark's  villainy  in  using  Maspero  as  a  tool 
to  ruin  Captain  Landon  as  Vice  Consul  General." 

Colonel  Atwater  gazed  anxiously  at  Landon's 
stern  set  face  as  the  train  rushed  along  to  Mont 
Cenis.  The  young  soldier  seemed  to  urge  the 
carriage  forward  with  every  movement  of  his 
lithe,  impatient  body. 

It  was  on  the  evening  of  the  second  day  that 
the  two  men  stepped  out  of  the  fiacre  at  Meurice's 


358  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Hotel,  and  then,  for  the  first  time, — Sidney  Lan- 
don  spoke  of  their  quest! 

He  personally  dropped  a  letter  into  the  official 
box  at  the  Hotel,  addressed  to  Mrs.  Gertrude 
Melville,  Grand  Hotel,  London,  and,  then  sent 
a  carefully  registered  pacquet  to  the  same  address. 

The  two  men  gazed  expectantly  at  each  other 
in  the  silence  of  Landon's  room ! 

"Let  us  lose  no  time,"  hoarsely  said  the  young 
lover.  "He  may  get  away!  I  would  follow  him 
to  Khamschatka  rather  than  lose  him  now !  Here 
is  my  will,  and  a  few  directions ! 

"Just  go  down  and  put  these  in  the  Hotel  safe, 
and  have  Haddon  call  a  covered  carriage." 

The  old  Colonel's  face  was  as  grim  as  when 
he  led  his  men  into  the  hell  of  Spottsylvania,  in 
the  bitter  years  when  all  the  leaves  of  the  Wilder- 
ness were  red  with  hearts'  blood. 

Landon  started  up  at  his  return! 

"What's  your  plan,  Sidney?"  asked  the  reso- 
lute old  veteran. 

"Haddon  will  find,  if  he  is  in  the  Hotel 
Athenee !  If  he  is,  we  will  see  him  at  once. 

"If  not,  we  can  await  his  return  in  the  court- 
yard ;  no  one  knows  us  there ! 


THE  DAY  OF  RECKONING.  359 

"I've  given  Jack  Haddon,  Clark's  picture.  I 
got  it  at  the  photographer's  in  Rome!  He  will 
mark  our  man  down." 

"And  then?"  queried  Atwater. 

"I  want  you  to  let  him  know  who  you  are!  / 
will  do  the  rest!  I  only  wish  you  as  a  witness !" 

"For  God's  sake!  Sidney!  Do  nothing 
rashly!"  murmured  the  old  Colonel.  "Is  this 
fellow  worth  it?" 

"Let  us  go!"  wearily  replied  Landon.  "I  can- 
not wait  another  moment!" 

There  was  a  silence  in  the  carriage  as  the  two 
friends  drove  down  into  the  Rue  Scribe,  and,  at 
the  Grand  Hotel  corner,  the  carriage  awaited  the 
return  of  Jack  Haddon,  who  was  an  ordinary 
tourist  in  appearance,  in  plain  clothes. 

It  seemed  an  age,  that  fifteen  minutes,  till  the 
agile  Briton  returned. 

"  'E's  in  the  private  card  room,  a-talkin'  with 
a  couple  of  fellows !  'E  can't  get  away.  It  opens 
out  of  the  billiard  room!" 

"Very  good"  sternly  said  the  master.  "You 
take  the  carriage  up  to  the  entrance  of  the  court ! 
You  are  to  show  us  the  billiard  room  quietly,  and, 
then  wait  in  the  carriage,  in  the  court !" 


360  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

Five  minutes  later,  the  flaneurs  in  the  billiard 
hall  of  the  Grand  Hotel  de  1'Athenee  languidly 
raised  their  heads  as  Colonel  Atwater  marched 
stolidly  along  to  the  card  room,  followed  by 
Landon,  stepping  with  a  panther's  springy  tread. 
His  eyes  were  fixed  and  staring  as  he  walked 
along  to  meet  his  mortal  enemy. 

There  were  three  men  sitting  in  the  little  room 
at  a  card  table,  whereon  the  glasses  told  of  a  con- 
vivial function. 

Rawdon  Clark,  haggard  and  fierce-eyed, — 
sprang  up  as  Landon  quietly  closed  the  door. 

Atwater  started  at  the  icy  coldness  of  Sidney 
Landon's  voice. 

'7  have  come  a  thousand  miles  to  see  you," 
he  said,  fixing  his  blazing  eyes  upon  his  enemy. 

"This  is  Colonel  Atwater,  Commander  of  the 
Grays !  You  knoiv  the  Regiment  well!  We  have 
some  business  with  you ! 

"If  you  wish  one  of  your  friends  to  remain 
as  a  witness,  all  right." 

"We  don't  propose  to  move,"  cried  the  two 
raffish  looking  fellows,  in  a  truculent  chorus. 

"All  the  same,  then"  coolly  replied  Landon. 
"First,  let  me  tell  you,"  he  sharply  said  to  Clark, 


STIR  XOT,  OX  YOUR  LIVES  !"— Page 362. 


THE  DAY  OF  RECKONING.  361 

"your  tool,  spy  and  mail  thief — Signore  Jacopo 
Maspero,  lies  in  the  police  dead  house,  at  Rome, 
killed  by  the  woman  you  paid  to  betray  Mel- 
ville!" 

Clark  sprang  back  and  made  a  motion! 

"Don't  drop  that  hand,  sir!"  harshly  cried 
Colonel  Atwater,  whose  left  hand  was  in  his  coat 
pocket ! 

There  was  an  ominous  silence  as  the  watchful 
Atwater  moved  closer  up  to  Clark. 

"You  shall  listen,  sir!"  he  thundered.  "I  want 
you  to  know,"  said  Landon,  with  increasing 
scorn,  "that  Maspero  has  confessed  all,  and 
turned  over  to  me  the  proofs  of  your  unutterable 
villainy!" 

Clark  glared  around  the  circle! 

"Northam  and  Witherspoon,"  he  cried,  "I  want 
you  to  bear  witness  to  this  pack  of  damned  lies !" 

Ignoring  the  millionaire's  retort,  Landon  piti- 
lessly resumed: 

"I  recovered  from  him  the  letters  which  you 
paid  him  to  steal, — the  originals, — which  you 
could  not  buy!" 

Clark  grew  white  with  rage,  as  Atwater's  deep 
voice  broke  in: 


362  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"And  I  forced  from  Mrs.  Myra  Brandon  your 
dirty  farrago  of  lies, — obtained  through  Wilmot 
and  Bolton!  There's  one  letter  that  will  make 
'Black  Bill'  hunt  you  over  the  world !  /  have  all 
these  originals!" 

Clark  was  cornered  like  a  rat!  His  livid  eyes 
roved  from  Atwater  to  Landon. 

He  caught  a  gleam  of  encouragement  from 
his  raffish  guests,  who  were  deceived  by  At- 
water's  grave  sobriety  of  dress,  and  Landon's 
still  restrained  patience. 

"And  so,  you've  come  all  the  way  here  to  bully 
me  about  the  girl  you  disgraced, — and,  Melville's 
light-heeled  wife." 

There  was  the  sound  of  a  crash  as  Clark  went 
down  before  Sidney  Landon's  impetuous  on- 
slaught! But,  accustomed  to  bar-room  brawls, 
the  defeated  scoundrel  had  leaped  back! 

He  rose  with  a  bound, — his  murderous  eyes 
showing  the  glee  of  taking  the  last  trick !  There 
was  the  lightning  flash  of  the  one  idea  possessing 
him! 

To  cheat  Fate  by  robbing  Agnes  Hawthorn 
of  the  man  whom  she  loved ! 

His  hand  shot  out, — there  was  the  gleam  of 


THE  DAY  OF  RECKONING.  363 

silver  steel  and  the  triple  click  of  a  pistol  lock, — 
but  only  a  howl  of  pain  succeeded  that  ominous 
warning. 

Miles  Atwater  had  grasped  the  right  hand  of 
the  detected  villain! 

With  one  mighty  effort,  he  bent  the  wrist  back, 
till  the  bones  snapped,  and  Rawdon  Clark,  un- 
masked and  defeated,  dropped  into  a  chair! 

"Stir  not,  on  your  lives!"  cried  Landon,  as  he 
covered  Witherspoon  and  Northam  with  his 
pistol. 

"Hear  me,  you  lying  dog!"  mercilessly  added 
the  young  soldier.  "You  abused  the  woman 
whom  you  pretended  to  love,  with  the  foulest 
suggestions!  You  wrote  that  anonymous  letter 
to  Melville,  for  which  he  will  cut  your  back  to 
tatters!  You  are  helpless  now, — but,  for  the 
wrong  you  have  done, — I  will  shoot  you  like  a 
rat  if  you  ever  cross  my  path  again.  Remember 
this,  you  murderous  brute!  The  letter  you 
tricked  out  of  a  foolish  woman,  goes  to  her  hus- 
band !  He  will  dog  you  do^vn  like  a  wolf!" 

"Take  notice  from  me,"  broke  in  Atwater's 
growling  bass  voice.  "Prindle  is  out  of  the  regi- 


364  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

ment!  I  shall  certify  to  every  one  in  Rome  the 
impossibility  of  your  dirty  lies  about  Landon! 

"And,  by  God,  your  life  will  pay  the  penalty 
if  you  abuse  my  regiment  or  an  officer  in  it! 
Find  some  corner  of  the  world  to  hide  yourself! 
I  have  prevented  Landon  from  killing  you  like 
a  coyote!" 

The  two  men  strode  out  without  a  glance  at 
the  crestfallen  schemer!  But,  the  philosophic 
Atwater  had  coolly  picked  up  Clark's  pistol  and 
quietly  pocketed  it! 

The  next  day — the  Honorable  Rawdon  Clark 
had  vanished  from  Paris,  and  Colonel  Atwater 
was  homeward  bound  to  Rome. 

Over  in  dingy  London,  a  loving  woman  was 
hiding  in  her  snowy  bosom  a  letter  which  said : 

"I  send  her  letter.  Give  it  to  her.  Tell  her 
that  I  never  received  it!  It  was  given  over  by 
the  dying  thief  who  stole  it!  I  only  wait  now 
for  the  voice  of  the  past ! 

"Then,  when  Agnes  Hawthorn  has  listened  to 
it,  she  will  know  why  I  could  only  speak  to 
her  alone !  For,  of  all  women  on  earth,  she  done 
has  the  right  to  know!" 


CALLED  BACK.  365 

CHAPTER  XV. 

CALLED   BACK. 

While  Sidney  Landon  recovered  his  shaken 
composure  at  the  Hotel  Meurice,  Colonel  Miles 
Atwater  stole  away  and  sent  an  imperative  cable- 
gram to  Major  General  Rufus  Hatcher,  Army 
and  Navy  Club,  Washington,  D.  C. 

He,  then,  having  dispatched  the  agile  Haddon 
to  take  his  through  place  to  Rome,  via  Mont 
Cenis,  spent  the  most  of  his  leisure  before  train 
time  in  the  inditing  of  a  carefully  written  dis- 
patch to  General  Hatcher: 

"We've  got  the  boy  sure,  now,  Rufus,"  he 
gladly  wrote,  "and, — /  think,  also, — a  valuable 
recruit  for  the  Grays.  Go  ahead  and  get  the  ap- 
pointment. Cable  me,  care  Consulate  General, 
Rome !  I  am  going  to  stay  here  and  see  the  thing 
through !" 

The  two  army  friends  passed  a  solemn  half 
hour  before  Haddon  reported  the  carriage  ready. 
The  brisk  valet  had  found  time  to  dart  over  to 
the  Athenee. 

"This  'ere  millionaire  chap  has  cut  his  stick! 


366  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

That's  flat,"  was  the  report  which  quieted  At- 
water's  apprehensions ! 

"He  is  done  for,"  quietly  said  Landon.  "Your 
character  and  presence  as  Commander  of  the 
Grays  kills  his  dirty  gossip,  and, — he  believes  me. 
— I  think, — in  my  liberal  proposition,  to  shoot 
him  at  sight! 

"But,  Miles,  he  will  have  no  chance!  I  beg 
you  to  say  nothing  of  my  whereabouts.  I  shall 
just  have  time  to  catch  the  steamer  at  Ches- 
bourg!  I'll  run  direct  over  to  St.  Louis.  I'll 
execute  the  necessary  legal  papers,  see  to  the  dis- 
position of  the  estate,  and,  then, — notify  my  law- 
yers that  I  shall  send  Edwin  Morgan  over  there 
to  take  charge  as  my  agent !" 

"And,  then?"  anxiously  demanded  Miles  At- 
water. 

"I  shall  come  back  to  Rome,  give  Morgan 
his  instructions,  definitely  resign  the  Egyptian 
service,  and, — probably  buy  a  yacht,  and, — sail 
around  the  world!" 

"That's  some  of  Wainwright's  binnacle  non- 
sense, my  boy,"  cried  the  old  Colonel,  affection- 
ately putting  his  hand  on  Landon's  shoulder. 

"Don't  you  know  you're  the  only  son  I  have! 


CALLED  BACK.  367 

Promise  me  that  you'll  do  nothing  till  you  see 
me!" 

"How  could  I,  you  dear  old  grizzly  bear?" 
fondly  replied  the  younger  soldier.  "There's 
my  hand  on  it!  I  promise!  Don't  you  see  that 
I've  got  to  come  back  for  Morgan?" 

"Morgan  be — blowed!"  roared  Miles,  with  an 
effort  at  restraint. 

"You'll  come  back  to  thank  Mary  Atwater  for 
patching  you  up  when  the  Sioux  left  their  little 
marks  upon  your  anatomy,  for  riding  too  far 
ahead  of  your  squadron!" 

"Anyway"  laughed  Landon.  "Love  to  them 
that  are  at  Rome,  also !" 

But,  there  was  no  dissembling  when  the  train 
pulled  out! 

"  'E's  a  regular  out-an'-outer,  is  Colonel  At- 
water!" ventured  Haddon.  "Salt  of  the  earth, 
sir !  D'ye  know,  'e  went  himself  an'  got  Colonel 
Stanton  to  telegraph  to  London  to  the  Horse 
Guards  for  my  full  pardon, — an',  it's  on  the  way, 
so  I  needn't  hide  now  from  Her  Brittanic 
Majesty's  stray  Sergeant  Majors!" 

Landon  spent  his  last  three  hours  in  Paris  in 
"literary  exercises."  They  were  vain  attempts  to 


368  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

produce  a  satisfactory  letter  to  be  read  by  Miss 
Agnes  Hawthorn,  Grand  Hotel,  London. 

After  tearing  up  some  twenty, — the  young 
cavalryman  at  last  dispatched  the  briefest  one. 

Its  announcement  that  he  was  going  upon  a 
secret  business  visit  of  a  month  to  America  was 
followed  by  the  simple  statement  that  he  would 
return  to  Rome  to  close  up  his  affairs. 

"I  shall  come  back  to  Europe,  if  only  to  see 
you.  Think  all  the  past  over,  and  remember  that 
I  have  only  asked  for  your  faith  in  my  honor! 
You  will  receive  from  me,  on  my  return,  the  story 
of  which  even  the  Atwaters  have  been  ignorant! 
1  can  say  to  you  that  there  will  be  no  one  in  Rome 
to  annoy  you, — for  the  one  who  insulted  you  and 
maligned  me,  has  disappeared,  never  to  return. 

"Colonel  Atwater  can  explain  to  you  why! 
Suffice  it  to  say,  that  he  has  been  detected  and 
betrayed  by  his  spy  Maspero  on  his  wretched 
deathbed." ' 

Sidney  Landon  had  reached  New  York  on  the 
fleet  "Ville  de  Paris,"  before  Colonel  Miles  At- 
water's  letter  from  Rome  fully  enlightened 
Arthur  Melville  as  to  the  occurrences  in  Paris. 

It  was  only  after  perusing  Mrs.  Mary  At- 
water's  private  epistle,  that  the  heiress  and  her 
"other  soul"  felt  free  to  return  to  the  banks  of 


CALLED  BACK.  369 

the  Seine, — for  the  completion  of  that  magnifi- 
cent wardrobe,  in  which  dazzling  war  paint,  Miss 
Hawthorn  was  to  be  presented  at  Her  Majesty's 
First  Drawing  Room. 

A  fortnight  in  Paris  exhausted  Arthur  Mel- 
ville's leave,  and  Miss  Hawthorn,  under  escort  of 
the  wife  of  the  First  Secretary  of  our  English 
Legation,  departed  again  for  London,  with  that 
serene  self  consciousness  which  Worth  and  Pin- 
gat,  alone,  can  give! 

"Far  above  rubies"  is  woman's  confidence  in 
correct  gowns, — and, — Agnes  Hawthorn,  now 
subject  to  certain  varying  palpitations  of  tfoe 
heart,  was,  all  in  all,  a  fond  and  loving  woman. 

In  all  her  letters  from  the  Atwaters, — in  all 
her  daily  life  with  the  Melvilles,  the  name  of  Sid- 
ney Landon  was  artfully  tabooed, — it  was  avoid- 
ed as  gracefully  as  the  ocean  greyhound  swerves 
away  from  the  ominous  iceberg. 

And,  yet,  withal,  a  cheerful  patience  seemed 
to  possess  even  Forrest  Grimes,  who  had  chival- 
rously acted  as  "Big  Brother"  and  Emeritus  valet 
de  place, — both  in  London  and  Paris. 

He  had  taken  a  run  over  to  Paris  to  say  "Good- 
bye" to  honest  Frank  Hatton,  who  had  been  sum- 

24 


370  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

moned  home  to  Philadelphia  to  take  the  responsi- 
ble promotion  of  Assistant  Editor-in-Chief  of  the 
Philadelphia  Mail. 

It  was  only  after  telegraphing  Colonel  Atwater, 
in  urgent  terms,  that  Hatton  received  Sidney 
Landon's  American  address. 

And,  Grimes,  as  well  as  Atwater,  now  knew 
that  Rawdon  Clark  had  suddenly  sold,  to  an  un- 
known buyer, — his  overshadowing  interest  in  the 
Philadelphia  Mail. 

"Flail  no  longer, — thank  God,"  said  Frank 
Hatton,  as  the  two  men  conferred  over  Colonel 
Atwater's  letter,  telling  them  of  Rawdon  Clark's 
miserable  villainy,  and  the  open  disgrace  of  the 
Paris  fracas! 

"He's  off  for  Timbuctoo  or  Kalamazoo!" 
cheerfully  remarked  Grimes. 

"I  fancy  the  dog  has  had  his  day !" 

And,  when  Grimes  put  Hatton  on  the  "Pom- 
erania,"  at  Havre,  he  knew  that  Sidney  Landon, 
on  his  way  back,  had  agreed  to  meet  Hatton  for 
one  day  in  Philadelphia. 

"It  looks  as  if  the  clouds  had  rolled  around  at 
last, — Frank,"  mused  the  overjoyed  Grimes. 
"And, — the  silver  lining  begins  to  flash  out!  I 


CALLED  BACK.  371 

wonder  if  we  shall  ever  meet  again  in  the  Eve- 
less  Paradise!  Who  knows!" 

"Not  as  we  were,"  sighed  Hatton.  "We  will 
find  Sidney  Landon  a  deserter,  for  I  believe  in 
his  next  Paradise, — Mademoiselle  Eve  will  be 
very  much  'en  evidence.' ' 

"And,  as  for  me,"  he  demurely  confessed,  "I 
have  a  little  woman  in  Philadelphia  who  has 
already  written  to  me  that  five  thousand  a  year 
is  enough  'for  two!'' 

"Go  to!  Go  to!"  gaily  cried  Grimes.  "They 
go,  the  festive  cusses  go!  Remember!  I'm  not 
chary  of  my  silverware! 

"And — so,  I  will  be  left  to  dance  in  the  silk 
stockings  and  play  Pontifex  Maximus  to  the 
light-headed  and  light-hearted  boys  of  the  Eve- 
less  Paradise." 

As  the  great  steamer  swung  around,  Frank 
Hatton,  going  home  to  a  richer  life  and  a  waiting 
love,  never  thought,  as  he  waved  his  farewells, 
that  the  stern  self  reliant  man,  left  alone  on  the 
cheerless  granite  quay,  was  breathing  a  prayer 
for  the  loved  and  lost  in  fond  memories  "of  one 
remembered  sunny  head,"  which  had  so  long  been 


372  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

lying  low,  pillowed  in  death  under  the  whispering 
grasses  of  the  Golden  State! 

It  was  seven  weeks  from  the  day  of  Colonel 
Atwater's  farewell  to  Sidney  Landon,  when  the 
Melvilles,  the  Hollingsworths  and  Mrs.  Miles  At- 
water  were  gathered  at  the  railway  station  in 
Rome,  in  answer  to  an  adroitly  prearranged  tele- 
gram of  the  alert  Jack  Haddon. 

Sidney  Landon's  face  flushed  as  he  stepped 
from  the  train,  and  was  enfolded  in  the  vigorous 
bear  hug  of  the  delighted  old  veteran! 

"You  rascal"  cried  Landon,  as  his  man  darted 
out,  to  rescue  the  luggage  from  the  uniformed 
Italian  banditti  of  the  railway! 

"This  is  your  work!" 

"Never  mind  whose  work  it  is !"  cried  Colonel 
Atwater!  "You  will  see  all  my  guests  at  the 
Hotel  de  Russie!" 

And,  much  stir  was  there  in  Rome  over  the 
triumphal  procession  of  three  carriages,  while 
valet  Haddon  hid  his  diminished  head,  and  yet 
was  overjoyed  at  the  envelope  which  Colonel  At- 
water thrust  into  his  hand ! 

Her  Majesty's  formal  pardon  was  accentuated 
by  a  crisp  £10  note! 


CALLED  BACK.  373 

A  bit  of  moisture  dimmed  the  merry  scape- 
grace's eyes  as  he  murmured: 

"God  bless  the  dear  old  buffer !  An'  he  hasn't 
got  such  a  lot  of  them  there  engravings  to  throw 
away!" 

Mrs.  Mary  Atwater,  for  once  in  her  life,  proved 
herself  a  true  daughter  of  Eve  as  she  triumphantly 
sat  alone  with  the  returning  wanderer! 

With  artful  carelessness,  Landon  listened,  in 
the  long  drive, — to  news  of  every  one,  including 
the  wretched  aftermath  of  Maspero's  crimes  and 
the  crucial  official  examination  of  the  Consulate 
General's  affairs ! 

One  person  only  was  forgotten,  and, — that 
charming  person,  strangely,  was  Miss  Agnes 
Hawthorn ! 

Landon  was  nervously  restless,  while  his  gen- 
tle tormentor  mused : 

"My  dear  wayward  boy,  you  would  ride  un- 
answered to  the  Alps  with  me!  No  information 
shall  be  volunteered  as  to  the  golden-haired  god- 
dess !  Love  must  find  out  its  own  way !" 

And,  Landon  gazed  out  upon  dingy  Rome  and 
held  his  peace,  k>r  he  could  hear  the  tell-tale  beat- 
ing of  his  heart. 


374  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

The  sudden  ushering  of  Landon  into  a  banquet 
hall,  decorated  with  the  beloved  colors  of  his 
country,  and  graced  with  the  gallant  guidons  of 
the  "Grays,"  in  which,  "K"  troop's  battle-stained 
silken  banner  held  the  proudest  place,  unmanned 
the  young  soldier. 

He  sat  at  the  right  of  the  steadfast  Mary  At- 
water,  when  the  old  Colonel  called  the  guests  to 
order ! 

"This  is  a  strictly  military  assemblage,"  the  vet- 
eran said,  "and,  so,  I  claim  obedience  from  all! 
I  am  both  the  oldest  and  the  ugliest!" 

With  a  ringing  voice,  he  read  an  official  order 
of  the  War  Department,  reciting  the  appointment 
of  Sidney  Landon,  late  Captain — U.  S.  Cavalry, 
to  be  Major  in  a  certain  distinguished  staff  corps. 

The  surprised  young  visitor  sprang  to  his  feet, 
in  astonishment,  only  to  drop,  overcome,  in  his 
chair,  when  Mrs.  Atwater  handed  him  a  sealed 
official  envelope. 

It  contained  his  transfer  as  Major  from  the 
staff — to  his  old  Regiment. 

"March  up,  now,  sir,"  whispered  the  army 
wife,  through  her  happy  tears,  "and,  salute  your 
Colonel!" 


CALLED  BACK.  375 

Landon  mused  as  in  a  dream,  until  he  faced  the 
grizzled  old  warrior,  who  muttered : 

"It  was  the  only  way  we  could  find  to  rake  you 
in,  my  boy,  and,  so — prevent  you  becoming  a 
nautical  globe  trotter, — if  that's  not  an  Irish 
bull! 

"See  that  you  swear  in  to-morrow,  and  cable 
your  acceptance  to  the  War  Department !  You've 
got  two  months'  leave,  and,  we  will  take  you 
along  with  us !" 

Somebody's  eyes  were  very  dim  as  a  hidden 
orchestra  broke  out  in  the  old  Regimental  march, 
which  had  been  Landon's  lullaby  as  he  laid  long 
years  before,  maimed  with  the  Sioux  bullets! 

The  dinner  was  positively  a  riotous  one,  and, 
yet,  neither  Gertrude  Melville  nor  Elaine  Hol- 
lingsworth  could  catch  the  newly  made  Major's 
wandering  eye! 

The  man  who  feared  nothing, — had  become 
strangely  timid. 

It  was  only  when  Edwin  Morgan  entered,  as 
if  by  chance,  with  a  huge  packet  of  mail,  that 
Landon  became  alert  and  uneasy! 

Rapidly  scanning  the  accumulated  pile,  he  grew 


376  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

pale  as  he  noted  one,  which,  covered  with  stamps, 
bore  the  postmarks  of  California's  metropolis. 

The  ladies  had  retired  under  the  artful 
guidance  of  Mrs.  Atwater,  when  the  Colonel  led 
Landon  aside  into  a  little  alcove! 

''Sidney,  my  boy,"  he  said,  as  his  voice  trem- 
bled. ''Read  this  cable  from  General  Hatcher, 
— and,  bless  God  for  such  a  friend !  Now,  in  all 
your  triumphs  of  the  hour,  I  ask  but  one  favor. 
I  wish  you  to  give  me  those  two  letters  of  poor 
Dora  Prindle's. 

"Here's  a  letter  from  'Black  Bill.'  He  writes 
me  from  his  modest  country  home,  for,  he  is  now 
retired  for  life  on  two-thirds  pay.  I'll  read  it, — 
all  that  you  should  know."  The  words  touched 
Landon's  heart: 

"Atwater, — I  have  tried  for  four  years  to  find 
out  who  was  hounding  down  Captain  Landon, 
with  the  anonymous  letters  and  accusations  which 
have  been  the  regimental  mystery !  I  always  ad- 
mired Landon  as  a  soldier !  He  will  tell  you  so, 
and — you  know  it!  I  was  always  kind  to  him, 
since  the  days  when  he  joined  us,  a  rosy  gradu- 
ated cadet !  And,  by  God,  poor  as  I  am,  if  I  can 
serve  him,  or  clear  his  honor,  I'll  come  over  the 
ocean  to  tell  any  one  living, — that  Landon's 
whole  life  with  the  Regiment  was  vuithout  a  stain! 

"The  Grays  had  twenty  years  of  the  best  of  my 


CALLED  BACK.  377 

life, — they're  sadly  changed  now,— our  dead  lie 
scattered  in  five  new  states.  Landon  has  been 
worried  out  of  the  army, — poor  Murray  Raynor 
is  the  last  to  fall  under  the  Indian  rifle,  and, — 
my  day  is  done! 

"I'll  never  jump  at  the  sound  of  'Boots  and 
Saddles'  again!  But,  tell  Landon  that  I'll  cross 
the  sea  to  unearth  the  liars  who  vilified  him,  and 
that's  all  old  'Black  Bill'  can  do !" 

Landon's  head  was  bowed  upon  his  hands. 

"It  has  been  the  sacrifice  of  a  life!  Poor  old 
man!  Colonel!  I  have  all  the  proofs  here !"  He 
tapped  his  breast!  "And,  when  one  person  has 
seen  them,  I'll  then  give  you  Dora  Prindle's  let- 
ters to  destroy!  Poor,  brave  old  'Black  Bill/ 
must  never  know  of  his  wife's  disgrace." 

The  Colonel,  with  "one  person"  in  his  mind, 
raised  a  joyous  shout! 

When  all  the  rest  came  trooping  in,  the  veteran 
filled  Landon's  glass  to  overflowing. 

"Let  us  drink  to  the  absent,"  he  cried,  and 
Major  Sidney  Landon's  glass  trembled  as  the 
hidden  orchestra  played  softly,  "Some  day,  you'll 
call  me  back  again!" 

There  was  no  danger  of  a  sentimental  revul- 
sion, for,  for  the  first  time  since  his  graduation. 
Colonel  Miles  Atwater  deliberately  began  to  sing, 


378  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"Benny  Havens,  oh !"  a  performance  of  such  un- 
usual musical  merit  that  the  sweet-voiced  women 
all  joined  in  and  drowned  the  old  soldier's  leonine 
roar  in  a  flood  of  soaring  melody. 

It  was  Morgan  who  handed  Colonel  Atwater 
a  cablegram  just  brought  up  by  the  host,  in  pro- 
pria  personal 

This  voluble  Boniface  had  mentally  decided 
that  all  the  Americans  were  crazy, — but, — good 
paymasters,  and,  so — unsuspecting  sheep  to  be 
closely  sheared. 

"There  you  are, — vale  Rawdon  Clark!"  mut- 
tered Atwater,  as  he  handed  Major  Landon  the 
telegram. 

It  brought  the  blood  leaping,  flame-like,  into 
Landon's  cheeks.  It  was  from  Frank  Hatton  at 
Philadelphia. 

"United  States  Court  has  decided  against 
Clark.  Elkhorn  Mine  found  to  be  on  opposing 
company's  ground.  Order  out  for  Clark's  arrest. 
The  surveyors  have  all  turned  State's  evidence 
and  confessed.  Clark  is  a  bankrupt  and  fugitive. 
He  sailed  for  South  America  a  week  ago,  with 
the  woman  who  was  his  go-between  in  the  crime. 
Full  particulars  in  Associated  Press." 

Major  Landon  drew  Morgan  aside. 


CALLED  BACK.  379 

"I  shall  need  you  all  day  to-morrow,"  he  said. 
"I  will  borrow  you  from  Melville." 

And  then  he  timidly  drew  near  to  Gertrude 
Melville. 

He  led  that  radiant  young  matron  aside,  and 
explained  to  her  his  desire  to  convey  "a  certain 
letter  of  great  importance"  to  a  certain  person  in 
London! 

"I  wish  your  advice,"  he  said.  "I  could  not 
risk  losing  it !  My  honor  depends  upon  it!  And 
— you  know, — you  can  guess  why  that  I  can  not 
go  and  deliver  it,  myself!" 

The  gentle  dissembler  at  his  side  dropped  her 
eyes  in  a  sudden  confusion. 

"Don't  go, — Sidney — don't  send!"  she  shame- 
facedly said. 

"That  person  will  arrive  here,  as  my  guest  in 
three  days!  You  know  that  all  roads  lead  to 
Rome!" 

Major  Landon  raised  her  two  little  white 
hands  and  kissed  them  fondly. 

"You  are  not  an  angel,"  he  said,  "only  the  next 
thing  to  one, — the  dearest  woman  in  the  world!" 

"Except  one"  remarked  Gertrude  Melville,  as 
she  evaded  further  colloquy.  "Come  to  me  to- 


380  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

morrow  at  eleven!    Give  it  to  me  then.    And — 
she  shall  receive  it  at  my  hands." 

When  the  happy  party  broke  up,  Major  Lan- 
don  had  learned  of  the  sudden  departure  of  the 
Brandons  for  Venice ! 

The  social  atmosphere  had  been  murky  around 
the  Art  Exchange,  and  the  greens,  reds  and  yel- 
lows now  glared  upon  the  walls  of  an  old  palazzo 
on  the  Canal  Grande ! 

Some  invisible  spirit  led  the  excited  Landon 
out  of  the  hotel  in  the  silence  of  the  night  to  com- 
mune with  himself!  He  wandered  on  and  on, 
until,  with  a  start,  he  paused,  as  the  plashing 
waters  of  the  Fountain  of  Trevi  recalled  him ! 

The  great,  white,  silent  stars  were  gleaming 
down  on  the  shimmering  pool  as  the  lonely  man 
tossed  a  coin  into  the  darkening  waters! 
It  flashed  yellow  in  the  moonlight ! 
"/  wonder  if  gold  will  break  the  charm,"  he 
murmured ;  "for,  I  have  gold  now ! 

"The  unearned  increment, — the  concrete  force 
of  the  world, — the  lever  of  power, — the  minister 
of  pleasure !" 

And  many  old  dreams  he  dreamed  over  as  he 
slowly  retraced  his  steps. 


CALLED  BACK.  381 

There  was  a  sensation  at  the  Consulate  Gen- 
eral the  next  day,  when  it  was  vaguely  noised 
about  that  Mr.  Edwin  Morgan,  Deputy  Vice  Con- 
sul General,  had  abruptly  resigned  his  post  and 
would  leave  at  once  for  America. 

"A  result  of  the  office  scandals,"  cried  all  the 
loungers  at  the  American  Club,  but,  only  Atwater, 
— Melville — and  the  suddenly  enriched  Major, 
knew  that,  to  use  the  vernacular — Edwin  Morgan 
had  "dropped  into  a  good  thing." 

Major  Landon  deliberately  "sported  the  oak" 
for  three  long  days, — though  his  table  was  deeply 
covered  with  cards  and  invitations! 

The  pendulum  of  social  favor  had  swung  once 
more,  and  the  most  romantic  tales  of  his  adven- 
tures en  Pasha  floated  from  club  to  drawing-room 
and  all  over  Rome! 

He  did  not  even  approach  the  Palazzo  Vecchio, 
where  he  certainly  had  a  free  field,  for  Arthur 
Melville,  was  now  an  extremist  in  the  official 
supervision  of  his  office! 

The  "painting  light"  allured  him  in  vain ! 

But,  Major  Landon  was  seen  on  the  Corso, — 
in  the  Borghese  Gardens, — on  the  Pincian, — at 
the  opera  and  theater — under  the  gracefully  in- 


382  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

nocuous  escort  of  Mrs.  Atwater  and  that  dashing 
matron, — Mrs.   Elaine  Hollingsworth. 

When  besieged  by  the  gossips,  Charley  Hol- 
lingsworth  only  "winked  the  other  eye,"  and  said 
nothing. 

The  Princess  Branci  forte  was  in  town — and, — 
moreover, — he  was  the  escort  of  Mrs.  Melville, 
and  that  returned  Queen  of  Beauty,  Miss  Agnes 
Hawthorn,  who  was,  however,  a  mere  "bird  of 
passage,"  en  route  for  her  beloved  Vienna. 

But,  behind  the  flimsy  drapery  of  this  social 
masking,  there  was  an  undercurrent  like  the 
solemn  Greek  chorus  of  old. 

Agnes  Hawthorn,  alone,  in  Gertrude  Melville's 
shaded  boudior,  feared  to  look  at  her  own  blush- 
ing face  in  the  great  pier  glass,  as  she  read  the 
letter  addressed  to  her  by  the  widowed  mother 
of  Ethel  Raynor. 

The  very  address,  "My  dear  child,"  had 
touched  her  heart !  General  Hartwell's  relict  had 
neither  kith  nor  kin,  since  her  only  daughter, 
Ethel  Raynor,  had  laid  down  her  tired  head  to 
rest  under  the  violets  of  San  Rafael. 

"I  can  tell  you, — my  dear  child,"  she  wrote, 
"of  the  cruel  work  a  wicked  woman's  bitter- 


CALLED  BACK.  383 

hearted  gossip.  It  was  this  heartless  meddling 
which  darkened  two  lives. 

"General  Hartwell  took  me  to  visit  West  Paint, 
after  the  war,  when  my  only  child,  Ethel,  was 
seventeen. 

"Young  Landon  was  a  gallant  boy,  the  Cadet 
Adjutant, — the  pride  of  his  class,  and  soon, — in 
the  chivalric  way  of  the  dear  old  Alma  Mater, 
he  became  romantically  attached  to  Ethel! 

"Graduating  hop,  parades,  and  flirtation  walks 
found  them  together!  I  little  dreamed  of  the 
growing  devotion  of  the  young  soldier, — and  the 
awakening  of  a  girlish  love  in  my  dear  child's 
heart,  then,  unfolding  like  a  flower ! 

"But,  General  Hartwell  was  both  keen-eyed 
and  sternly  ambitious! 

"He  whisked  us  away  over  to  Europe!  In 
three  years,  Ethel  grew  into  womanhood.  She 
had  forgotten  the  impulsive  young  cadet  sweet- 
heart, save  only  to  remember  him  as  a  graceful 
friend  of  those  girlish  days. 

"Landon  was  graduated  and,  away,  winning  his 
spurs  on  the  frontier! 

"My  husband  was  a  masterful  man!  It  was 
in  accordance  with  his  ambition  and  love  of  pros- 


384  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

pective  rank  that  Ethel  married  Major  Murray 
Raynor, — who  was  rich,  gallant  and  respected. 

"He  was  congenial,  of  a  fine  family,  and,  with 
an  especially  fortunate  future  as  to  promotion. 

"Alas !  After  the  marriage,  that  promotion  to 
the  Major  carried  him  into  the  Grays ! 

"And, — then,  some  fiend  in  human  form,  who 
knew  of  Landon's  cadet  life,  found  a  means  of 
mean  revenge. 

"Gossip,  bitter  stories,  anonymous  letters, 
tales,  and  every  veiled  method  of  at- 
tack drove  Murray  Raynor  nearly  crazy. 

"My  child  withered  under  the  brutal  persecu- 
tion. 

"I  feared  even  a  collision  between  the  men,  for 
Captain  Landon's  grave,  distant  courtesy  was 
held  to  be  a  covert  means  of  hiding  an  intrigue 
disgraceful  to  the  regiment. 

"Major  Raynor  sent  his  wife  home  to  me  to 
escape  these  slanders.  The  old  cadet-time  was 
painted  in  lurid  colors.  No  one  could  prove  who 
the  author  was, — though  many  suspected  some 
regimental  rivalry  to  be  the  cause. 

"Alas!  Captain  Landon  was  ordered  out  here 
on  recruiting  duty,  and — in  the  Major's  absence. 


CALLED  BACK.  385 

"The  anonymous  letters  and  army  gossip  be- 
came even  more  bitter!  It  was  only  after  my 
husband's  death!  I  brought  the  two  men  to- 
gether in  my  presence. 

"They,  God  bless  them,  understood  all  the  hon- 
orable memories  of  the  past ! 

"With  a  manly  gallantry,  Captain  Landon 
transferred  to  another  regiment !  It  was  too  late! 
My  darling  Ethel  sickened  under  the  vulgar  abuse 
which  continued.  Her  name  was  soiled — her 
gentle  heart  broken. 

"Landon's  transfer  was  now  held  up  as  a  flight, 
— forced  by  fear  of  discovery  and  of  Murray 
Raynor's  revenge ! 

"When  my  poor  darling  died,  Major  Raynor 
was  away  on  the  Terry  campaign  in  the  Yellow- 
stone. 

"And, — sad  at  heart, — I  learned  from  a  friend 
on  the  Rio  Grande  that  Captain  Landon  abruptly 
left  the  army,  shocked  by  the  needless  tragedy 
of  my  dear  child's  death! 

"Had  Major  Raynor  been  with  us,  when  we 
laid  the  light  of  my  life  away,  he  would  have  led 
Landon  to  his  wife's  grave  as  a  brother,  mourn- 
ing with  him! 

25 


386  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

"And,  then,  after  Landon's  abrupt  resignation, 
— the  stories  still  pursued  him! 

"They  made  Major  Raynor  a  heart-broken 
misanthrope!  He  madly  threw  his  lonely  life 
away  in  desperate  foolhardy  valor,  in  the  Nez 
Perce  fight! 

"And,  now,  when  you  read  this,  know  what 
woman's  inhumanity  to  woman  can  be!  God 
alone  knows  whose  wicked  heart  pursued  these 
three  unhappy  people.  I  never  visited  the  regi- 
ment, and — so  am  ignorant  of  any  cause. 

"I  go  soon  to  my  darling.  I  shall  pray  God 
to  bless  Landon  for  the  delicate  manliness  which 
led  him  to  give  up  his  own  cherished  Regiment 
to  remove  even  the  suspicion  of  nearness  to  the 
dear  woman  for  whom  he  had  cherished  only  the 
ardent  school-boy  fancy  of  a  West  Point  cadet! 
The  blow  was  directed  at  him,  I  know,  for 
the  lies  and  scandal  have  followed  him  out  of  the 
army,  and — long  after  Ethel  Raynor  had  been 
wrapped  in  God's  own  rest  and  peace !  And,  when 
I  know  that  Captain  Landon  has  been  hounded 
into  other  lands  by  this  undying  malignity, — that 
these  merciless  lies  have  shaded  your  fair  young 
life, — this  knowledge,  alone,  makes  me  write  you, 


CALLED  BACK.  387 

— that  your  young  heart  be  troubled  not!  May 
God  grant  that  I  meet  you,  together,  before  I 
leave  this  weary  world,  and  to  know  that,  over 
my  daughter's  grave,  I  can  proudly  tell  you  Sid- 
ney Landon  has  been  a  mirror  of  chivalry, — a 
pilgrim  of  honor  and  a  silent  sufferer,  rather  than 
shade  a  woman's  name  by  openly  revenging 
wrongs  that  could  be  traced  to  no  man's  hand. 

"I  fear  that  I  do  know  whose  hand  dealt  the 
blow, — in  sheer  envy  of  Ethel,  and,  may  God 
forgive  her!" 

Gertrude  Melville  wondered  not,  when  the  or- 
phaned heiress  threw  her  arms  around  her,  and 
cried : 

"/  must  see  him!  And,  I  owe  my  life  to  him ! 
I  have  made  him  so  wretched!  Listen,  Gert- 
rude!" 

She  read  one  sentence. 

"Here  is  what  Ethel  Raynor  s  mother  writes  to 
me: 

"The  dead  Ethel  Raynor's  widowed  mother 
shall  make  clear  Sidney  Landon's  honor  to  you, 
— for  the  sake  of  the  beloved  child,  now  taken 
away  from  me, — who  only  knew  him  in  the  gen- 
tle glamour  of  a  girlish  fancy, — the  woman  whom 


388  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

he  chivalrously  protected, — with  a  useless  devo- 
tion, which  has  cast  him  out  of  the  army !" 

"I  have  ruined  Sidney  Landon's  happiness," 
cried  the  golden-haired  orphan. 

"Do  the  best  you  can  to  repair  the  wrong!" 
demurely  answered  the  lovely  matron. 

"Will  you  trust  to  me !  I  know  now,  from  Mrs. 
Atwater,  that  he  fears  your  wealth  no  more !" 

And,  then,  Agnes  Hawthorn,  in  crimson 
blushes,  bowed  her  head,  and  fled  away  to  read, 
once  more, — Sidney  Landon's  letter: 

"You,  alone,  of  all  women  in  the  world  have 
the  right  to  know  the  whole  truth." 

It  was  on  the  following  evening  that  Gertrude 
Melville  enticed  her  pensive  guest  into  her  car- 
riage for  a  drive  under  the  silvery  light  of  the 
pale  moon,  looking  down  upon  the  stern  old  hills 
where  countless  human  tragedies  have  hallowed 
the  still  enchanted  ground. 

Agnes  Hawthorn  was  silent!  She  cared  not 
whither  her  hostess  was  leading  her,  and,  neither 
spoke  until  the  carriage  halted  before  the  gate- 
way of  the  church  of  San  Sebastian. 

There  was  a  tall  form  waiting  there,  and, 
silently,  the  trembling  girl  took  the  stranger's 


CALLED  BACK.  389 

arm,  for  a  voice  which  had  been  echoing  in  her 
heart  for  months  softly  said: 

"Let  us  listen,  once  more,  to  the  song  of  the 
tvaters!" 

They  stood  alone,  there  together,  by  the  brim- 
ming basin,  filled  with  its  floating  stars,  for  Mrs. 
Gertrude  Melville  had  strangely  vanished! 

Sidney  Landon,  turning  his  head,  fancied  that 
he  saw  the  martial  figure  of  his  beloved  Colonel, 
hidden  there  in  the  somber  shade  of  the  wall's 
deepest  angle. 

Major  Landon  took  the  hand  of  the  silent 
woman,  and  kissed  it  with  a  fervor  which  belied 
his  calmness. 

" 'Agnes,"  he  softly  said.  "I  carried  your  vio- 
lets on  my  heart,  in  all  the  mad  rush  of  that  wild 
massacre  of  Gura! 

"I  sent  back  to  you  the  letter  which  never 
reached  me,  the  letter  which  the  dying  thief  re- 
turned to  me, — through  Melville, — only  when  the 
terrors  of  the  Church  assailed  him,  upon  his 
death  bed! 

"I  have  not  yet  read  the  letter  which  you  des- 
tined as  an  answer  to  my  heart's  one  prayer! 
And,,  here, — now, — beside  the  faithful  fountain 


390  CAPTAIN  LANDON. 

dear  to  lovers,  I  ask  you  to  tell  me  of  that  letter !" 

The  beautiful  woman  smiled  up  at  him,  through 
her  happy  tears ! 

"You  alone,  of  all  the  world,  Sidney,"  she  said, 
in  a  voice  soft  as  the  falling  dews  of  night, — 
"you  alone — had  the  right  to  that  knowledge !  I 
told  you,  Sidney, — to  come,' — to  come  to  me, 
here, — at  Rome, — that  I  would  believe  your  sim- 
ple word  against  the  whole  world" — her  voice 
faltered,  as  she  placed  both  her  slender  hands  in 
his  ardent  grasp, — "and, — now,  I  bid  you,  stay!" 

"There  was  but  one  barrier  built  by  pride,  my 
own  darling,"  the  soldier  whispered ;  "but  a  jug- 
gling Fate  has  sent  me  riches  unasked!  And, 
now,  as  I  go  back  under  the  silken  banners  to 
bear  the  honorable  burden  of  a  soldier's  life, — I 
ask  you,  will  you  be  my  wife?" 

The  noble  beauty  of  the  orphan's  face  thrilled 
him,  as  she  proudly  said: 

"Wherever  the  road  leads,  we  will  walk,  please 
God, — side  by  side — and — bear  the  burden  of  life 
together.  /  demand  the  right  to  atone!" 

In  some  strange  way,  they  found  themselves, 
with  Colonel  Atwater  and  Mrs.  Gertrude  Mel- 


CALLED  BACK.  391 

ville  gazing  upon  the  two,  who  seemed  glorified 
in  that  mystic  fairy  moonlight ! 

"//  /  mistake  not"  tenderly  said  the  veteran, 
as  he  laid  his  fatherly  hand  upon  the  fair  woman's 
stately  head,  "the  Grays  have  gained  a  new  re- 
cruit,— and — one  who  needs  a  world  of  Regi- 
mental training!" 

And,  the  old  Colonel  opened  his  arms,  for 
Agnes  laid  her  head  upon  his  bosom. 

"It  is  time  to  go  down  and  report  at  Head 
Quarters"  the  Colonel  dryly  remarked. 

"And,  I  give  you  my  first  and  only  order !  See 
that  it  be  not  long  until  you  are  sworn  into 
'Ours!'" 

And,  the  spirit  of  the  singing  waters  blessed 
them  as  they  went  away. 


THE   END. 


University  of  California 

SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 

Return  this  material  to  the  library 

from  which  it  was  borrowed. 


JAN  151990 


tV 


A     000  032  285     9 


